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Chapter Text

When it happened for the first time, he didn’t immediately understand at first that it wasn’t real.

Felix was sitting in a cafe drinking his coffee and reading a newspaper, when she entered.

The cafe was filled with people who came for an early lunch and there were practically no empty seats at the tables, not to mention completely free tables.

Felix looked up from the newspaper and watched as Marinette ordered something for herself at the bar and turned to look around the room, probably searching for an empty seat.

He immediately averted his eyes, and diligently continued his reading so as not to meet her eyes and at least not to betray his interest.

What if she suddenly wants to sit at his table, because she has nowhere else to go?!

Although this was an absurd idea: even if it was the last empty seat in all of France, Marinette wouldn’t agree to sit at the same table with him willingly. She always snorted and turned away from him when they bumped into each other in class.

Since Felix moved to Paris and started attending the same class as his cousin, many of his new classmates disliked him, remembering the fake message from ‘Adrien’, but for some reason Marinette was especially intolerant of him, as if Felix somehow insulted her personally.

It was likely that – as Felix later guessed – she tried to confess her love to Adrien in her video that day and Felix deleted her message along with the others. Felix figured that this played a major role in her attitude towards him.

Too bad it did, because the girl was pretty, and one could feel the character in her. Probably if Felix met her under some other circumstances...

“May I sit here?” Felix heard Marinette's voice interrupt his thoughts.

Felix’s jaw dropped in surprise: not only that she approached him contrary to his expectations, but also how soft her expression was. He didn't remember her ever looking at him with such a warm expression on her face.

He probably stayed in his surprised state for too long, because Marinette spoke again, lowering her eyes in embarrassment.

“The thing is that there are absolutely no empty seats, and I really need my coffee, otherwise I will fall asleep right on the go...” She confessed.

Realizing his unforgivable stupor, Felix jumped up from his chair and pulled out an empty chair for her.

“Of course!” He exclaimed, blinking at her.

And this was the second moment (after her voluntary desire to sit at the same table with him), that slightly dumbfounded Felix.

Surely, Felix grew up in a good family and was raised as a gentleman, but with his classmates he usually didn’t show it much. And if this situation actually happened, Felix might have agreed to let Marinette at his table, but he would definitely have thrown some kind of caustic comment, like “Weren’t you taught to respect someone else’s desire to be alone with them self?” or “The weather is fine outside, why don't you have your coffee in the park” – in the hope that the girl would leave on her own and won’t accept his hospitality.

But there was something about her subtle softness and the whole situation that made Felix almost court her.

A faint blush appeared on Marinette's cheeks as she sat down in the chair Felix had pulled out, placing her coffee on the table.

For some reason Felix felt a slight wave of warmth in his chest, and even forgot himself for a moment before returning to his chair.

“Thank you, Felix. You just saved me.” Marinette said in the same uncharacteristically soft voice as she took a sip of her coffee. “You're better than you pretend to be.”

Felix looked at her carefully.

Where was it seen that your practically-declared-enemy instantly softened towards you because of the simplest gesture of politeness?! Felix never even dreamed of such a thing!..

Wait.

Wait.

Wait, what?

What were the clues in that lucid dreaming technique that Felix read about one day, that you could figure out if you were asleep or not? Wasn’t one of them about an unusual behavior of people?

What else?

The place!

Felix looked around the cafe as if he saw it for the first time.

He actually did.

Felix saw this cafe for the first time in his life! He had no idea where this cafe was. On which street and even in what city!

What else?

The time!

He must be able to restore the timeline before this moment.

In real life, even living as walking robots as many people do, we usually remember how we get to places, right?

But Felix couldn’t remember it. He couldn’t remember what and where he did before he found himself drinking coffee in this cafe. He didn’t even know what day it was! What time of the year?

Nothing.

Felix looked at Marinette again.

She was wearing a beautiful sea green dress. Perhaps this color would set off both her blue eyes and his green ones well, Felix thought. He would have remembered this color if he had seen this dress on her before.

Of course, the dress could be new, or he just hadn’t seen it yet, so this dress itself meant nothing, but everything else... All the signs pointed to the fact that Felix was sleeping and was dreaming about this whole situation in his sleep.

Felix decided to test his theory by acting atypical and see how Marinette would react to his behavior.

Even if she was sincerely grateful for a place in a crowded cafe, there must be limits to this! All that was left to him – just to provoke her into doing something the real Marinette would never do.

For example, she would not accept real courtship from him! She was crushing on Adrien, right?

What was that that she was saying before?.. Oh right!

“I think if people know you from a bad side first, it will alienate those who aren’t actually interested in you.” Felix answered at last. “After all, in the final we all want to find that one and only person who will be ready to accept us any way we are, right?” He smiled the softest smile he could muster.

Marinette looked at him, blinking in surprise.

“These are… actually very deep thoughts, they make a lot of sense.” She admitted. “Perhaps I jumped to conclusions about you.”

“And you would have ended up in the ranks of those who didn’t pass the competitive selection if you hadn’t made the wise decision to have a cup of coffee with me.” Felix smirked.

“Right.” Marinette smiled back. “Though I don't remember making that decision.” She said, laughing to herself. “I'm not at all sure how I ended up here. And now I’m practically on a date...”

She stopped laughing and looked at Felix, embarrassed.

“Not that I assumed that we…” She began.

“Why not?” Felix asked, giving her a supportive smile. “Let's call it our first date.” He suggested softly. “It sounds better than the informal coffee drinking of two people who are just sitting at the same table. Don’t you think so?”

And although Felix almost from the very beginning stopped smiling purposefully and became engrossed in dialogue with Marinette, at that moment he remembered that he was just testing his theory that he was dreaming.

Ultimately the answer of the real Marinette if he ever invited her on a date – even in such a non-standard form – would be unequivocal…

Chapter Text

“Isn’t it customary to come with flowers on a first date?” She asked instead, smirking slyly at him.

“You’re right,” Felix said, forgetting himself in the pleasure of the moment again. “So, where are my flowers, Marinette?” He asked with mock impatience.

Marinette looked at him in surprise, her eyebrows raised. And the next moment they both burst out laughing.

“Oh, this is so good!” Marinette said, wetting the corners of her eyes from tears – so merrily she laughed. “I don’t remember when was the last time I was laughing so hard... My flowers... oh, you are definitely not like my pa...” She broke off and looked at him fearfully. “Someone who likes to bring me flowers...” She finished evasively.

Somehow, Felix felt a twinge of jealousy at the thought of someone giving her flowers. After all, it was just a dating game. And generally speaking, they were practically enemies at school. And over all, there was a high probability that he dreamed all this…

All the more unexpected for him were his own next words.

“You can’t just accept flowers from the boys while you’re dating me.” He said sternly, furrowing his brows.

Marinette looked at him, bewildered.

“Am I dating you now?” She asked slowly.

“Well, we said ‘the first date’, which suggests having follow-up dates, right?” Felix explained, – it was foolish to retreat now…

“I usually don’t accept his flowers anyway, so...” Marinette muttered under her breath, looking away.

Did she just accept the fact that they were dating?

Did HE?!!

Felix cleared his throat.

For some reason the idea of dating Marinette wasn’t repugnant to him at all. And the warmth that he felt when she joined him today seemed to become hotter and spread wider in his chest and stomach.

“May I hope to hold your hand on our first date?” Felix asked, not sure if it was still his provocation or his real desire.

Marinette looked up at him, blushing slightly. Her lips parted and Felix’s gaze slid of its own accord over those lips, perfectly inviting.

Felix looked up and met the gaze of the mistress of the beautiful lips again. It was the first time such a spellbinding moment had happened between them, and Felix was sure that she, at that moment, was also thinking about kissing him.

‘Of course she was thinking about a kiss!’ Felix thought almost ruefully, ‘This is my dream, and this Marinette is the object of my imagination. Of course she thinks the same thing as me!’

“If we are dating,” Marinette said in the meantime. “I don’t see why not.”

And she stretched out her hand, placing it palm down in the middle of the table.

Felix looked at her hand in indecision.

He wanted to touch her, wanted to feel the warmth of her skin against his. But at the same time, an uneasy feeling arose in him.

“Is my date too shy to take my hand?” Marinette teased, but her expression was warm and supportive.

Felix sighed and shook an uneasy feeling away.

“I'm not.” He said confidently. “You are my girlfriend. Why would I be shy to take my girl by the hand?” And put his hand on hers.

*

Felix woke up with a pleasant feeling of calm warmth, which was different from his usual turbulent morning flow of thoughts.

It was as if his tossing soul had found shelter and a soft, invisible cloud of comfortable calm enveloped him.

Felix showered, dressed, had breakfast with his mother, packed up and went to school.

It was only when he approached his class that he had a premonition that something was wrong. There was something about this place that didn't match his current mood.

But it wasn’t until he entered the classroom that he realized what it was.

Or rather, who.

Marinette was chatting with her best friend standing in the pass where he needed to go. But it wasn’t that his path was blocked that bothered him.

Felix suddenly remembered that he had a very strange dream tonight. Its strangeness was not only in the amazing brightness and realism of sensations, although this was also present. But most importantly, in this dream, he was on a first date with his girlfriend.

And that girl was Marinette.

The feel of their hands touching flashed in his palm, and Felix reluctantly shook his hand, shooing it away.

The sensation was pleasant and warm, it made his soul warmer too. But Felix couldn’t allow himself to live in illusion from the games of his own unconscious.

Grandpa Freud was an intelligent fellow, but in this case Felix refused to believe his opinion that his own hidden, repressed desires contrived an imaginary ideal reality for him in his sleep.

He didn’t like Marinette at all!

Yes, she certainly was beautiful, but beauty is an objective concept, right? She was smart, and knew how to stand up for herself and her friends when needed. But after all, as a class representative, this was her duty!

She didn’t yield to him in arguments and didn’t allow herself to be fooled around his finger as easily as the rest of the simpletons around Felix did. But those were just… Those are…

This didn’t mean at all that he liked her in secret from himself!

Felix sighed.

Oh this Freud with his unconscious mind that he invented for his own entertainment! And a person must now live and suffer from it!..

Felix approached Marinette, who still didn’t notice that she was blocking him from passing.

“What can you talk about so enthusiastically that you don’t even notice that you create obstacles for others on the path to knowledge?” Felix grumbled, coming close to her.

Marinette flinched in surprise and spun around to face him, accidentally poking Felix in the stomach with her elbow. She looked at him in horror in silence, probably just confused.

“This is the part where you apologize to me and let me go to my seat.” prompted Felix, rolling his eyes.

“Maybe this is the part where YOU apologize to me?!” Marinette protested, putting her hands on her waist.

“What am I supposed to apologize for?!” Felix argued, raising his voice.

“You sneaked up on me and scared me!” She replied, also raising her voice.

“I'm not on the hunt to be sneaking!” Felix did not give up. “I was walking towards my seat in class when you started swinging your elbows!”

“Did I start?!” She exclaimed indignantly. “I was just…”

“Felix and Marinette!” Called the teacher. “Please take your seats. Your eternal scandals can be continued during the break. I’m starting the lesson.”

“Fine!” Marinette barked at Felix and sat in her seat.

Felix sat in his one and sighed.

This was definitely not a dream.

Standard ride from nothing to a fight, culminating in a scandal. Just the way every their conversation usually went. This was exactly the reality that Felix expected to see.

Not a warm and almost caring beautiful girl who laughed at his jokes and gave him smiles. Who appeared out of nowhere and with such ease agreed to be his as if she was genuinely interested…

From this memory, for some reason, Felix’s throat squeezed with an unpleasant lump.

Because that girl wasn’t real.

Today’s dream was just...

A dream.

Chapter Text

The sun was still high and warmed everything around with its rays, but it was not the sun, whose warmth really warmed him.

Felix walked through the park, holding his girlfriend’s hand, and it seemed to him that the world was getting warmer precisely from this, and not at all from the sun.

Marinette pulled him to turn off the path onto the lawn and led him to a young tree.

She stopped, looking at the fragile plant, which was still no thicker than a graceful woman’s wrist. The girl let go of his hand and lightly wrapped her arms around herself, looking thoughtfully at the tree.

Felix stood on the other side of it for a while, and they both watched in silence as the smooth leaves shimmered in the sun, fluttering in the wind.

“I wonder if the trees grow faster in my dreams.” Marinette said thoughtfully without taking her eyes off the plant.

Felix looked at her in surprise and suddenly remembered that this was a dream, and how yesterday they were fighting at school again.

To his deepest surprise, he realized that no matter how scandals with Marinette usually ignited him, filling him with a sense of life, now that Felix had a taste of another sort of life in her, a source of warmth, – he realized that he would prefer this dream to become a reality instead.

Felix sighed.

Such a pathetic thought!

His life was interesting and full of impressions, and why would he have thought of preferring it to the imaginary games of his subconscious?!

Of course, Felix has not yet met anyone who could see him through his tricks and pranks, perceiving him deeper than those masks that he easily changed. Someone with whom he could share his life. But he was still so young, and…

And his imaginary girlfriend couldn’t change his view of life after just one date!..

“I guess it depends on whether your sleep rules you or you control the sleep.” Felix answered at last, leaving his thoughts.

“And how does it usually go with you?” Marinette asked slyly, and it seemed to Felix that they were no longer talking about trees.

It was as if she was asking Felix whether he controlled his own sleep, in which they walked together. It was as if Marinette wanted to know if his imaginary reality carried him, or if Felix consciously wanted to be with her.

But this thought, like many of his thoughts in a dream, was absurd! How could his dream-girlfriend, who was herself controlled by his subconscious, worry about the sincerity of his feelings for her?

Wait… Feelings? When did he start to think about Marinette in terms of feelings?!

Felix shook his head.

“Normally I don't control the growth of trees in my dreams,” He grinned, bringing the conversation slightly back on track.

Marinette silently looked at him for a moment and lowered her eyes. Then she turned her back to him and the young tree and leaned slightly back on the tree.

“Then it will be years before this tree grows enough to be sure to lean on it.” She said in a slightly disappointed voice and sighed.

“In the meantime, you can lean on me,” Felix said softly, not knowing why he felt like saying it.

He took a step closer, moving towards the tree before he could second guess himself – and wrapped his arms around Marinette from behind, embracing both the girl and the slender tree, and folding his arms around her waist.

Probably because his rational mind was now mostly asleep, in a dream it was easier to express emotions and do actions that Felix would have had time to track down and stop in real life.

Marinette carefully placed her hands on his, as if securing his embrace, and Felix again forgot that he was just sleeping – so natural and sweet was the moment of this unusual embrace.

*

But soon strange things began to happen in his reality.

Felix was sitting on a bench in the schoolyard during the lunch break, leafing through rather than reading the book he was holding.

His thoughts floated somewhere between the events of his today’s dream and a completely different reality, which he again met at school.

The memory of her warmth against his was so vivid as if they were actually walking together in that park and then hugged. But Felix was hundred percent sure they weren’t.

First of all it wouldn’t make any sense given the nature of their real relationship – or rather the lack thereof. Besides, Felix had no idea what kind of park it was or how Marinette and him got there.

So these events definitely belonged to his pseudo-memories, albeit extremely vivid ones.

He was also concerned about how realistically Marinette from his dreams was reacting to his behavior. Not realistic from the point of view of what he expected, but completely natural, as if this girl, invented by him in a dream, had her own thinking and willpower...

Felix looked up from his book and suddenly locked eyes with Marinette.

She instantly looked away and continued to chatter with her journalist-friend as if nothing had happened, sitting on another bench across the schoolyard.

Maybe he really imagined it? Because her gaze seemed to Felix not stern, as she usually looked at him, but rather thoughtful and... searching?

Felix shook his head.

How crazy it was to think that the real Marinette was looking at him with interest! And since when did it bother him at all?

Felix scanned the yard, trying to distract himself, and saw a red-haired boy whispering furiously with another, a dark-haired one in informal clothes.

The first one he knew as Nathaniel, he sat behind Felix in class. And the second one he saw a couple of times with the red head.

Finally, the brunette pushed the taller boy in the back and he timidly headed towards the girls sitting on the bench.

It was only now that Felix noticed a small bouquet of flowers in Nathaniel’s hands and his whole body tensed unconsciously as he realized what was about to happen.

But it wasn’t like Felix had any rights to react like that! – He reminded himself. Felix didn’t even have a reason for it! He still didn’t like the real Marinette. Right?

While Felix was pretending to search for an answer to a rhetorical question, losing himself in distress, Nathaniel approached the girls and, blushing as if to match the color of his hair, handed the flowers to Marinette.

“Those are for you…” He mumbled, avoiding looking her in the eyes. “I just thought… They are beautiful.. And you are… too… And so I… There, take them…”

“Pathetic!” Felix thought, but not in a haughty and detached way that he usually observed such scenes, but instinctively clenching his fists against his will, as if someone were encroaching on his property...

Marinette stood up, but instead of taking the flowers she hid them behind her back, clasping her fingers together and lowering her head.

“I… I’m sorry, Nathaniel.” She said softly, “I know how much courage it probably took you, but I can’t accept them.”

“But I… I don’t ask anything in return…” Nathaniel looked at the flowers hesitantly.

“I know…” Marinette replied meekly. “It’s just… it would be wrong… for me.”

Though Marinette didn’t look at him, Felix felt as if the air vibrated between them. It seemed to him that she was holding herself back from looking at him…

But it wasn’t true! It couldn’t be!

Marinette only fought with him again this morning after hugging him in the park… No, he was being hugged by another Marinette!..

But why didn’t she take the bouquet? Maybe Marinette has someone and because of this she didn’t accept Nathaniel’s flowers? After all, she said that she didn’t accept flowers from another guy either...

Wait. That wasn’t she. That was Marinette from his dreams again who said that!

Damn it! This was driving him nuts!

Chapter Text

“I could actually use it as an idea for Jagged’s new cover!” Marinette exclaimed, sitting on the edge of the yacht, and dangling his legs down.

“Use what?” Felix asked, sitting next to her.

“His style of music represents freedom, you know.” She explained. “And what could be freer than the open sea?”

“I guess.” He said, although at the moment he was more concerned about another freedom – the freedom to be near her.

Felix carefully raised his hand and wrapped Marinette by the shoulders, pulling her slightly towards him. And the girl willingly rested her head on his shoulder.

“You know what’s good in dreams?” She suddenly asked, turning her head to him.

Felix looked at her, dumbfounded.

The reminder that he was asleep squeezed his chest uncomfortably every time. Plus it was so strange when your dream speaks to you about dreams…

“What?” Felix asked finally, coming back from his thoughts.

“You can do anything.” Marinette said, looking back at the sea. “Doesn’t matter what you’re expected to do. You can be anywhere. Doesn’t matter if your responsibilities are holding you in your hometown.” Marinette sighed.

Felix was looking at her, narrowing his eyes.

What was she talking about? What responsibilities could Marinette hold in Paris? She was 16, the whole world was open for her!

But wait…

This wasn’t Marinette. This was only his imaginary girlfriend that looked like Marinette...

It was so confusing!

Marinette put her hand on top of his arm holding her shoulder and looked in his eyes as if he could disappear any moment and she silently begged him not to do it.

“Sometimes I don’t want to wake up.” She confessed in a low voice.

Felix’s lips parted.

He was looking at her, feeling the heat enveloping him in a warm veil. And at that moment, it didn’t matter if this girl was real or the object of his imagination. Because the fear of losing her was real.

And the irresistible desire to touch her lips with his was real too.

Felix pulled her to himself and Marinette eagerly leaned her whole body towards him, as if she was pushed by an invisible wave from behind.

Their lips found each other in a desperate desire to prolong the moment that was destined to melt with the first rays of dawn.

*

“I don’t have to do this and I won’t!” He said, raising his voice.

Only this girl could make him lose control of his emotions so easily. And the greater the difference between his relationship with the real and imaginary Marinette became, the more easily Felix was losing his temper.

Their class was putting on a theater production for a school event and Marinette insisted that Felix also participate, ignoring his repeated refusal.

“But everyone agreed!” She insisted, clapping her hands on his desk. “You are also studying in our class!”

“Which doesn’t mean that I have to support all your absurd initiatives!” He objected again.

“Our initiatives are not absurd!” Marinette exclaimed, looming menacingly over him. “Stop insulting what we do!”

“Then stop forcing your stupid entertainment on me!” Felix yelled back, jumping up from his desk and slapping his hands on the table as well, now looming over her menacingly instead.

But Marinette didn’t seem scared at all. She only clenched her fists, clearly preparing for a counter verbal attack, when their almost hissing faces were separated by something opaque.

Both Felix and Marinette glared at the source of the item, preventing them from lashing out at each other, which turned out to be Adrien’s textbook.

The boy held it between them at arm’s length, probably trying to save them from poisoning each other with mutual poison splattering in all directions.

“Hey guys!” Called the model in a friendly voice, smiling sweetly.

“What?!” They both snarled with one voice, and Adrien immediately raised his hands, along with the textbook, in surrender.

“The main thing is that there should be no blood.” He joked, smiling sheepishly and turned to Felix. “Hey, Fe, why don’t you consider an opportunity to learn one of the roles?” Adrien asked and stopped his cousin with a gesture, seeing that Felix was about to protest. “Not for the main performance, but as a stand-in for the unlikely event that someone is unable to participate in the final performance.” And seeing that the other boy closed his mouth and considered his proposal, Adrien continued. “This would show the class that you support us even without actively participating in our events.”

Felix looked at him, wondering if that meant the class rep would stop yelling at him and knocking him out of the rut every chance she got.

“And Marinette,” Adrien smiled at her with his perfect model smile. “Why don’t you consider asking someone from a parallel class to fill the role you envisioned for Felix?”

And although Adrien’s suggestion seemed very adequate and would solve both the issue with the role and the need to pursue Felix, Marinette didn’t seem satisfied or even grateful for his offer.

“But I don’t want someone from another class!” She declared in the same elevated emotional voice. “I want…” She paused, as if she had almost said something unnecessary. “You are right, Adrien.” The girl said much quieter, lowering her eyes.

She turned around and sat down at her desk.

Adrien sat down in his place too and turned to Marinette, starting to talk to her in a low voice about something.

Felix slowly sank into his chair and stared at her back. He couldn’t bring himself to listen to their conversation, because his mind kept repeating her possible words, which he finished for her in his head.

‘I want HIM!’ – was the only thing he could imagine that sentence would end up with.

But that couldn’t be what she was really about to say! His subconscious was again playing a cruel game with him!

She was probably going to say ‘I want only our class to participate in the play’ or something like that. And it was only his brain that poisoned Felix’s heart with false hopes that the real Marinette somehow cared about him personally.

This double life was really driving him crazy, and Felix knew that something had to be decided in the lucid dream. That it was necessary to stop his non-real-relationship with a fake girl, while he could still think clearly.

But something told him that perhaps, imperceptibly, Felix had already passed the point of no return.

He couldn’t lose her.

“How is your work on the new Jagged Stone’s album cover going?” Felix heard his cousin’s voice through the thick fog of his heavy thoughts.

He lifted his head, watching Adrien smile at Marinette, still seated, turning towards her.

“Actually, I just recently had a great idea for this project!” Marinette replied enthusiastically.

Felix furrowed his eyebrows. He knew exactly what idea came to her for this project! But…

Marinette definitely told him about it in his dream!

Although maybe this Marinette was talking about some other idea?

And the fact that she was working on the cover… Without noticing it, Felix could have heard about it one of the previous days while Marinette was talking with her girlfriends. And then his subconscious replayed it in his dream in the form of an imaginary conversation with his imaginary girlfriend.

Yes. That’s exactly what happened.

Felix took a deep breath.

It’s good that his rational mind easily analyzed the situation and could deal with these coincidences, not allowing Felix to confuse reality with fiction!

He was tempted to ask what idea Marinette came up with, to make sure it had nothing to do with what his girlfriend was talking about.

His imaginary girlfriend.

Anyways…

But Felix couldn’t bring himself to say the words.

First, Marinette won’t tell him anyway, but will only use it as an excuse to fight him again.

And secondly, Felix didn’t know how he would explain this coincidence to himself if the idea turned out to be the same.

Chapter Text

Felix caught himself staring at Marinette in the school cafe again.

What was he doing here anyway? In the middle of all this noise!

Unfortunately, he knew the answer to this question...

Today, in his dream, he again went boating with his girlfriend, – this became one of their favorite activities, because it gave Marinette a feeling of freedom. Not the real Marinette, of course, but his girlfriend from his dreams.

Felix kissed her so many times that night! Her beautiful soft lips…

But despite the brightness and realism of sensations that rarely occurred in his dreams before, these kisses so much lacked a real touch!..

And today at school Felix couldn’t take his eyes off Marinette. Not off his dream girl, of course, but off the real Marinette.

It was increasingly difficult for him to find differences between them, because they came down mainly to Marinette’s behavior, and not to her appearance. Therefore, when Felix watched her from the side, without entering into their eternal conflict, the girl seemed to him exactly the same.

And now he trudged after her to the school cafe to once again admire his girlfriend...

Not his girlfriend, that is, but a girl who looked like her, spoke like her, was her... and wasn’t her at the same time.

Felix sighed and left the cafe for not torturing himself. He returned to class early and ran into Adrien.

“So you decided not to go then?” His cousin asked.

“Not to go where?” Felix asked irritably, still in his confused thoughts.

“To the museum, of course!” The model exclaimed, as if it was obvious. “I’m just surprised, because you love such things and…”

“Adrien, I don’t know what you are talking about, I didn’t hear anything about any museum.” Felix said, getting annoyed.

“Really?” Adrien asked, surprised. “I thought Marinette should have asked the whole class if they wanted to go.” But I just saw the final list and didn’t find you on it…”

“I see.” Felix squealed through clenched teeth. “Looks like your just-a-friend decided this for me…”

*

Felix slapped a piece of paper on Marinette’s desk as soon as she came back from her lunch break and sat down at it.

“Why is my name not on the class list for a trip to the country museum?” He demanded.

“This is a voluntary event.” Marinette explained, looking at him defiantly.

“AND?!” Boiled Felix.

“You don’t have to be there.” She replied caustically.

“And you signed the whole class but not me?!” Felix hissed.

“We are not obliged to endure your antics even there!” Marinette hissed back. “Even if the whole world goes there!”

“It’s not for you to decide!” Felix snapped, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Don’t you have something more urgent to do then just waste my time right now?” Marinette asked, rolling her eyes.

“I see what you’re doing,” The boy nodded slowly. “But it’s not gonna work!”

“Oh really?” Marinette jumped from her desk and took an aggressive step in his direction, causing Felix to move aside. “What, are you going to complain about me to the teacher?!”

“Oh, I can deal with my problems perfectly by myself.” Felix smirked.

“Am I your problem now?!” Marinette yelled at him again.

“Of course you are my problem!” Felix yelled back.

“Good!” She hissed.

“Fine!” He barked.

Then they both quickly turned around and went in different directions.

*

The next two lessons were canceled because of the akuma, and only after them did everyone return to the classroom to collect their things.

Felix stood at his desk, stacking his books and gazing askance at the scene next to him.

“You can’t get so close to an akuma, Alya!” Marinette scolded her friend. “For the sake of your reports, you constantly take so much risk!”

“Well, I’m better in that sense now.” Objected Alya. “But you know that I love risk!” She looked out the window dreamily. “There is freedom in risk! It’s like when you’re standing on a ship, and the wind is blowing in your face, and the spray is flying!”

Marinette turned around and looked at Felix with a little frightened eyes.

“What?!” The boy snapped, still mad at her for not listing him for the museum.

She rolled her eyes and turned away with a snort.

And only after that did Felix remember that he had gone boating that day in his dream.

Maybe that’s why Marinette looked at him when her friend spoke about the sea?

Wait. But she can’t actually know that her duplicate, his idea of her spent time with Felix on the boat…

He sighed and took his bag.

Today he returned home angry and confused.

Again.

But to his surprise it wasn’t that Marinette hadn’t put him on that list that pissed him off. Or even the fact that he was already having trouble distinguishing one girl from another.

What annoyed him the most was that he couldn’t kiss her! Just hug and kiss her like he did so many times in his sleep!

It pissed him off that despite the constant fights between them, because of his late-night fake dates, he was thinking about Marinette all the time! And today he was convinced that he was not thinking at all about the image from his dream, but about his real classmate...

And sleep was only a temporary refuge for his raging feelings.

*

They walked, sometimes stopping and kissing along one of the Parisian streets.

“Do you know you have perfect lips?” Felix asked, reluctantly breaking away from Marinette.

“There is no such thing as perfect lips.” She said, smirking at him skeptically.

“There is.” Felix insisted. “Yours.” He leaned over and kissed her again. “They are perfect.” He said, pulling back a little. “If I had such an opportunity, I would never break away from them.”

Marinette looked at him dreamily.

“Then your lips are just perfect for mine.” She said finally, and reached out to kiss him again.

After a long, tender kiss, they took a few more steps down the street and Marinette stopped abruptly, looking ahead in surprise.

Felix looked at her worriedly.

“How did we end up in Spain?” She said, still looking ahead.

The boy turned in the direction of her gaze and saw the Sagrada de Familia rising at the end of the street.

“Because we are....” Felix started and cut himself off.

He could not finish this sentence with words ‘in my dream’, because it would mean saying ‘you are not real’, ‘my happiness isn’t real’, ‘your feelings to me aren’t real too’.

Felix didn’t say it, but that didn’t change the fact that he knew it.

And it seemed to him that Marinette, who lightly squeezed his hand in hers, knew it as well.

Chapter Text

“How did you get here?!” Marinette yelled, putting her hands on her waist. “I didn’t include you in the list!”

“Your list isn’t the only way for an educated person to get into a museum.” Felix replied, smirking.

“I won’t let you join our tour group!” Declared class rep, blocking his way.

“I wonder how you are going to do it?” Felix triumphed. “Will you tell them that I am your classmate who came here like everyone else, but according to your personal desire, should remain outside the group?”

Then he leaned over and placed his palms on her waist, pushing her own palms up.

Marinette opened her eyes wide and froze, but didn’t back away from him.

Felix lifted the girl up and moved her aside from the entrance to the museum.

“I’ll tell them... I’ll say…” She babbled, coming to her senses as Felix put her down, let go of her and took a step towards the entrance.

“Whatever you say, I’ll be in this group.” Felix answered without waiting for her to finish, turning to Marinette. “So you can stop moving your perfect lips in vain!”

“I’m not…” She started, but froze as Felix froze himself, looking at her with wide frightened eyes.

He suddenly realized what he said, and it was the first time he really messed up, confusing the two girls not only in his head, but also in real life.

They both stared at each other for a few more seconds, then stormed away, Marinette – towards her friends, Felix towards the entrance.

*

Felix was still a little shaking, wandering between the huge paintings, thinking that of course Marinette couldn’t have known that he was calling his girlfriend’s lips perfect. She just didn’t expect to hear this kind of compliment from her enemy and now she will probably assume that he has a secret crush on her or something like that.

Which wouldn’t be far from reality, – the voice in his mind whispered traitorously.

His thoughts were interrupted when Felix heard a familiar sweet voice and looked up.

Marinette stood slightly away from the main group of the class along with her best friend, discussing something vividly.

“To Spain?!” Alya exclaimed, and immediately lowered the volume again, looking back at the group guide.

Felix froze, listening.

Did Marinette tell her friend they were in Spain tonight?

Damn! He wasn’t in Spain with this Marinette!

But this coincidence was too much to be ignored, so Felix crept up on the girls, bypassing the picture wall from the other side.

“That would be the perfect class trip, Alya, don’t you think? It is so beautiful in Spain!” Marinette said dreamily.

“You talk like you have already visited it!” Alya suggested.

“Not really, but I imagine it so vividly, as if I saw Sagrada de Familia with my own eyes.” Marinette sighed.

Felix’s back went cold.

Of course, Marinette didn’t even say that she saw this building in her dream, but the fact that she was talking about it TODAY was…

It was all too close, confusing him too much!

Felix had to make sure the real Marinette didn’t know anything about his dreams! And no matter how crazy it sounded in his head – he had to make sure that his imaginary girlfriend had nothing to do with his classmate!

Otherwise, he will soon go mad.

*

The next day, Felix caught her at the entrance to the school and blocked her path.

Marinette narrowed her eyes at him.

“What?! Still want some revenge for the museum, don’t you?” She asked caustically, ready to fight.

“Actually, no.” Felix answered in an even voice. “What I wanted is…”

“What other nasty thing have you come up with this time to make your existence in my life more annoying than it already is?!” Marinette continued her counter-attack to his attack that didn’t actually exist this time.

“I just wanted…” Felix started.

“What?!” She hissed, interrupting him again.

“Nothing!” Felix hissed back, turned around, and strode away from her, throwing the rose he had been hiding behind his back all this time onto the school steps.

His original plan was to give Marinette a flower and see if she would accept it from him.

Of course, this wasn’t a perfect plan, because Marinette could refuse the flowers not because he wasn’t her boyfriend, but simply because they were at odds.

But it was the best thing Felix could think of at that moment given the utter confusion in his mind.

Felix was already at his desk when Marinette entered the classroom, and he immediately turned to the window and clenched his teeth tightly, trying not to look at her.

Of course she knew now that he was going to give her that flower! And of course now he clearly saw that there was no way she could be his dream girlfriend, otherwise she would have stopped attacking him in class a long time ago.

On the other hand, he also didn’t stop fighting with her... but he did it only in order to maintain a sound mind, so as not to confuse reality with a dream and himself...

Could she do the same?

No!

After today’s rejection from her, such thoughts hurt Felix even more, and he decided to stay away from Marinette, not to look in her direction and not to torment himself with those hopes anymore.

It wasn’t until after school, as he walked past Marinette’s seat toward the classroom exit, that he noticed a red flower peeking out of her backpack.

It was definitely the rose he threw on the school steps. He was sure of it!

Felix continued walking towards the exit, feeling his body go slightly limp and he seemed to be floating through the air that had suddenly become dense around him.

Does this mean that Marinette accepted flowers from him while she didn’t accept them from others?

But technically speaking he didn’t give her that flower… She took it from the ground. Does it count? She must realize that the flower was meant for her, right?

His attempt to clear things up made things even more confusing and Felix wasn’t sure how long he would be able to take this…

Chapter Text

Felix was tense even in his dreams now, and could relax a little in her arms, only after Marinette’s long tight embrace.

Another shocking coincidence happened to him and completely knocked him out of the rut.

If Felix could somehow explain to himself the rose that Marinette accepted without accepting it, – the fact that she felt sorry for the flower, which wasn’t to blame for anything or whatever her sensitive designer’s soul could feel about it, – he could understand that.

Although this explanation was based more on her image from his dream than on his real classmate who constantly argued with him. But still.

Felix could deal with it.

But this new coincidence he couldn’t explain at all.

“What a beautiful color!” Alya exclaimed from her desk and Felix tried his best not to look at the girls in front of him. “What is this for?” The journalist asked.

“I saw this dress in my dream,” Marinette said quietly, but Felix was sitting right behind her and, against his will, hung on her every word. “For over a week I’ve been looking for a fabric that would be the same color as this dress from my dream, so that I can sew the same one.” She explained.

At the words in my dream’, Felix’s back involuntarily tensed up and his eyes themselves began to search for the fabric they were talking about, but he couldn’t see it. It was probably in Marinette’s bag out of his sight and to see it, Felix would have to betray his interest.

But... In her dream?!

Those words startled Felix too much for him to be able to think of anything else...

But it wasn’t until the girls left for their lunch break after class ended that Felix slowly got up and walked over to Marinette’s backpack that had been left on her seat.

This fabric, the edge of which was clearly visible sticking out of the backpack, was exactly the same color as the dress that Marinette was wearing when he first met her in that cafe in his dream.

In HIS dream!

Felix touched the fabric with a trembling hand.

Marinette couldn’t see that dress in his dream. She could see the dress only in HER dream! But how could that be?! Could two people really have the same dream?!

Felix’s head was slightly spinning with tension of what this thought could imply.

*

“Just come and kiss me!” Marinette said as she peered out from behind a tree.

Felix took a step towards his girlfriend readily.

“No, not now!” The girl stopped him with a gesture.

“I…” Felix stopped and furrowed his brows. “I don’t understand, Marinette.”

“At school. Tomorrow.” She explained.

“At school?” The boy was looking at her in surprise. “As in in the re…” He broke off.

Saying ‘in real life’ out loud would be like admitting that he was deceiving her or himself.

How do you tell your imaginary girlfriend that she is imaginary?

“In real life, yes!” Marinette exclaimed as she approached him. “Is that so hard?!”

“But...” Felix wasn’t sure what they were discussing anymore. “But you’ll think I’m crazy!” He said finally. “Which I probably am…” He grunted under his breath and looked up at her again. “And you’ll probably hit me into the face...” He added after thinking.

“And why would I do that?!” Marinette asked, crossing her arms on her chest.

“Because we’re not…” Felix silenced.

“Not dating in real life?” She finished for him again.

Felix sighted in defeat, looking away.

“No, we are not.” He confirmed.

“Well why don’t we start then?!” Marinette asked, taking his hand.

Felix raised his eyes at her.

“Because you like someone else in real life.” He said gloomily.

“What if I don’t?” Marinette asked, placing her free hand on his cheek. “What if I don’t like him anymore? What if I want to date my boyfriend in real life?”

“But...” Felix sighed again. How can one even prepare himself for such a conversation?! “Marinette, you are... not real. You are a figment of my imagination. It’s driving me nuts already…” He ran his hand over his face as if relieving fatigue. “If I start to raise my hopes like that...”

“Is it better to date an unreal girl then try to make a step towards the real one?” Marinette asked, turning his face to her.

“How can I... this is crazy!” Felix exclaimed, placing his palm over hers and looking at his imaginary girlfriend with pain in his eyes. “Even this conversation itself!”

Marinette left his hand and placed her second palm on his other cheek, looking at Felix with begging eyes.

“Felix, please,” She asked, “Do it for me! I want to hold you for real.”

“But... you hate me!” Felix protested, feeling his chest tighten more painful than it should be in a dream. “Not you... the real Marinette does...”

“What if I AM the real Marinette?!” She exclaimed, releasing him and stamping her foot angrily.

“Why am I doing this to myself?!..” Felix muttered under his breath, turning away from her.

“No, Felix, please, listen to me!” Marinette begged behind his back, but her voice seemed to begin to move away from him in space.

“I can’t! This is crazy! I’m talking to myself... You aren’t real!” The boy said, rushing in the opposite direction. “Whatever you tell me, it will only be what I know myself. Because I made you up!”

“Felix!” Her voice came from afar, as Felix seemed to walk through the thick air, not moving from his place, but infinitely moving away from her at the same time.

“Felix, honey, are you all right?”

Felix opened his eyes and saw his mother, looking at him attentively with a worried expression.

“I was walking to the kitchen and heard you screaming.” She explained. “Did you have a bad dream?”

“A nightmare.” He said.

*

His nightmare continued at school.

Marinette seemed to be furious, and found fault with his every move, and Felix’s own terrible mood didn’t help to defuse the situation. Therefore, they managed to quarrel twice even before the start of the lessons.

How could he even create such an illusion in his dreams?!

The real Marinette hated him and everything he did! She would never agree to date him, and even give him the slightest chance of rapprochement.

And his imaginary girlfriend... Felix didn’t know what to do with her at all.

“You are irresponsible!” Marinette yelled at him – Felix didn’t even remember why she attacked him this time. “You cannot be relied upon!” She continued.

And if he didn’t know better, Felix would think she was yelling at him for not coming to her and kissing her at school the way she asked him in his dream…

But this was real Marinette, who didn’t know what he saw in his dreams.

She just hated him.

Chapter Text

Felix found her sitting in a crowded café where they first met in his dream almost two weeks ago.

Marinette was sitting alone at the table, drinking her coffee. When she saw Felix, she put the cup on the table and turned away from him.

He walked over and sat down at her table silently.

Marinette continued to look away, defiantly ignoring his presence.

“I’m sorry.” Felix said as he put his hand on hers on the table.

“For what?” Marinette asked caustically, turning to him her face, which clearly showed how upset she was. “For walking away from me? Or for not kissing me at school?” She continued in a hurt voice.

“You know I can’t do that.” Felix said in a calm voice, though his emotions were far from calm.

“Why?” Marinette asked, and pressed her offended lips together tightly.

“I told you why.” Felix sighed. “You’ll think I’m crazy.”

“And since when has my opinion become important to you?” She snorted.

“Since...” Felix squeezed her hand lightly. “Since I fell in love with you, Marinette.”

Her face instantly softened, and became overwhelmed with emotion as Marinette looked at him with a searching, pleading gaze.

“Felix, I…” The girl said and swallowed. “I don’t know how and why this all thing happened, but I know I love you too. And I know I want to tell you this for real. In real life.” She covered his hand with her other hand. “To hold your hand for real. To kiss you…”

“But the real you would never...” Felix started, feeling his chest clench painfully.

“I told you I was real!” Marinette exclaimed.

“Then why did you yell at me at school today?!” Felix demanded.

“Because I was mad at you, that’s why!” She replied, frowning. “You walked away from me!” She pouted her lips again.

“In my dream!” Felix exclaimed, and looked around at the people who were staring at them.

Felix got up and pulled Marinette along from the table and out of the cafe. They went outside and instantly ended up in the park next to a thin tree. Felix had to admit it – moving in space in a dream was much faster than in reality.

“So what?!” Marinette continued the argument, taking her hand from him. “It was my dream too!”

Felix was staring at her for a few moments, blinking, then shook his head.

“See, this is the way I subconsciously explain your behavior to myself based on what I saw, including my dreams.” He said. “Because everything you say can only come from my own knowledge!”

“That isn’t true!” Marinette argued.

“How do you think it works then?” He asked, frustrated.

“If I told you something you didn’t know about me in real life, would you believe me?” The girl suggested.

“Technically speaking,” Felix started, “There is always a possibility that I guessed it, or invented some facts about you that turned out to be real just as a coincidence and…”

“I am Ladybug.” Marinette said, interrupting his speech.

Felix blinked at her.

Even in his wild imagination he wouldn’t invent such craziness.

Or would he?

“People often dream of dating famous people... or superheroes...” He said uncertainly in a weak voice.

“Are you such a person?” Marinette teased, smirking.

“No. I am not.” Felix admitted. “At least I thought I wasn’t…”

“Then you wouldn’t just imagine dating Ladybug in your dreams, right?” She suggested.

“I... I don’t know.” Felix said, confused. “If I saw you transforming into Ladybug in real life, then maybe…”

“You know I can’t risk my identity like that, right?” Marinette said defensively.

“You just told me you are Ladybug!” Felix reminded.

“It’s different.” Marinette retorted. “You are in my dream. The real you isn’t. And he also tried to make a deal with Hawk Moth, so…”

“How did you…” Felix started and trailed off. “Oh, no, no-no-no, you almost got me!” He smirked. “But you see, if I know that I was trying to make Hawk Moth help me to get my mother’s ring back, so you – being a part of my mind – can know it too.”

“Did you do it for your mother?” She raised her eyebrows.

“Don’t say you just found out about it, because I knew it, so…”

“Or I actually was there, when you dressed as Adrien and tried to kiss me.” Marinette smirked.

“Those are still my memories, so if I implemented the idea that you are Ladybug, Marinette from my imagination would know the same that I think Ladybug knows.” Felix explained.

“Fine!” Marinette sighed, and looked away from him. “There is no other way for me to prove to you I am real, so…”

“There IS one.” Felix said softly, pulling her in his embrace by the hand.

“There… is?” Marinette returned her hopeful eyes to him.

Felix hugged her tight and looked into her huge eyes tenderly.

“Yes.” He confirmed. “When I come and kiss you tomorrow at school, you have to kiss me back.”

“You... will?!.” She swallowed. “Are you really going to do it for me?”

Felix smiled softly at her.

“This, and much more.” He said and kissed her forehead. “Please be real,” He whispered, closing his eyes. “I don’t know what I’m going to do if you are not.”

Marinette pulled slightly away from Felix and raised her face to him.

“You’ll have to love me all your life.” She said, looking at him dreamily. “Because I’m real.”

*

Every time Felix was about to approach her, something seemed to stop him.

And these were not even external circumstances in the form of her friends who always surrounded her or the bell that rang at the wrong time.

Felix knew it was himself.

In his dream it was much easier to decide on something global and unrealistic. Because his dream was a dream. And it was quite another thing to approach a girl who hated him and kiss her in his real life.

Of course, Felix was not afraid of the slap that would surely land on his face after that. He also wasn’t afraid to seem like a psycho – the opinion of his classmates about him wasn’t the best anyway and didn’t particularly bother him.

Felix feared disappointment much more.

He was afraid of losing his last hope that his girlfriend was real. He feared losing the only opportunity to be with Marinette in real life. The prospect of remaining in the intangible world of dreams in the ring of his own imagination terrified him.

“Why are you staring at me like that?!” Marinette yelled when she caught his eyes on her.

“It’s not my fault that you constantly flash before my eyes!” He yelled back, but didn’t turn away.

“Then go and sit with Nath on the back desk!” She yelled. “And stop drilling my back with your eyes!”

“I don’t have to sit in the last row just because you imagine holes in your back!” He protested.

“Twerp!” She snorted.

“Boor!” He barked.

And they both sat down each at their desk, frowning.

*

By the end of the school day, Felix realized that he wasn’t ready to face the disappointment on his girlfriend’s face, whether it was real or imagined.

He could be called many words, but a coward was not one of them.

He would meet his reality, whatever it was, Felix decided, and walked over to Marinette, who was collecting notebooks from her desk while standing in the aisle among their noisy classmates.

Felix felt everyone’s eyes on himself and heard them fall silent in anticipation of another skirmish when he stood next to the class rep. From the looks of it, their bickering has become a kind of fun part of a school day in their classroom for everyone…

Marinette turned to Felix in annoyance, finally noticing him.

“Here comes the show.” Kim chuckled in anticipation.

Chapter Text

“What do you want from me this time?” Marinette hissed. “Do I block your path again?!”

Felix took her hand in his.

“You don’t. ”He said in a low voice, not hiding from the curious ears of his classmates, but rather to calm his nervousness and how his heart was pounding at that moment.

Marinette fell silent and looked at him with huge frightened eyes, her lips slightly parted.

“I don’t want to wake up from our dream anymore, Marinette.” Felix said, not hiding the vulnerability of his feelings, which were reflected on his face.

“You…” Marinette whispered, as tears rolled in her eyes. “You did it.” She swallowed. “ You came to me.”

Felix’s lips parted as he breathed out a shaky breath he didn’t even know he was holding.

He felt his eyes hurt from the tears that rolled up, – so strongly he perceived this moment of... reunion with his beloved.

“I did.” He said as he leaned to kiss Marinette like he did many times in his dreams.

And every time the sensation of her lips vanished from his perception as the darkness of the night vanished in daylight.

But Marinette’s kiss didn’t vanish this time.

His girlfriend was kissing him back with rapture, as if she wanted to feel every corner of his lips, touch every piece of his skin. Feel it for real. Feel what was inaccessible to them in their dream.

And Felix could understand her so damn well!

Because…

She. Was. Real.

Felix lifted Marinette up and turned her around in the air, still kissing her and pressing her tightly to his chest. Her arms wrapped around his neck and Marinette groaned slightly, enjoying his closeness.

Felix didn’t know how much time passed until he finally put his girlfriend back on the floor.

Wait. His girlfriend. Marinette.

Ladybug?!!

He pulled away abruptly and stared at her with his eyes wide open.

“This means that you are...” He started, and broke off, remembering that they were not alone.

Felix swallowed.

“I am.” Marinette smiled at him and pulled him closer by the tie to reach his ear. “And you don’t have to dress as Adrien to try kissing me anymore.” She whispered in his ear. “You can just kiss me as yourself. As my boyfriend.”

She let go of his tie and gave him a happy smile.

Felix was looking at her, amazed.

Marinette chose to tell him something only he and Ladybug knew, so even if someone heard it, they wouldn’t understand what the two were talking about.

But he did.

And the fact that she revealed her identity to him in his dream... in their dream (!!!) brushed aside all possible crazy explanations for why the real Marinette had suddenly kissed him back.

“You were real.” He said almost only with his lips, and Marinette winked at him.

Someone cleared his throat and they both turned to look at a confused Adrien standing among his shocked classmates staring at them.

“What… uhhh… was that?” Adrien asked, blinking.

Felix looked at Marinette, who intertwined their fingers and was smiling at him.

“Oh, this?” He asked, smiling back at her. Then he winked at Marinette and turned back to his cousin. “This is just my girlfriend.”

*
“So it worked then!” Squeaked Mullo, flying up to Tikki.

“I knew it! I knew that everything would work out!” Picked up Pollen, joining them.

“Will there be consequences?” Wayzz asked worriedly. “Because both of you used your powers without the restraining power of your chosen ones, so…”

“That was the thing Trixx and I learned just a few hundred years ago.” Tiki explained triumphantly. “If we use our powers without actually using them, – there are no consequences.”

“Like a dancing Eiffel Tower or a giant pie?” Xuppu teased.

Tikki licked her lips dreamily.

“No, no giant pie, unfortunately.” She confirmed. “None of the above.”

“So how does it work exactly?” Saas asked.

“The trick is to create an opportunity!” Tikki said solemnly, as if it explained everything.

“I don’t get it.” The Roarr frowned.

“So I was creating without actually creating anything – only an opportunity for their shared dream – the link between their minds.” Tikki said proudly. “And Trixx was making an illusion without actually making it – all the illusions were just the idea of the surroundings and only existed in their dreams – so they didn’t actually exist.”

“What does it mean for them?” Mullo asked.

“It means that all the rest was their own decision.” Tikki replied. “Choosing to act the way they did, allow themself to feel.” She sighed with content.

“Don’t you think it’s like you’ve picked up a boyfriend for your chosen then?” Saas argued dissatisfied. “Maybe she would have chosen someone else!”

“She already tried dating Luka, Sass.” Tikki replied. “But you yourself saw how it ended.”

“And what about Adrien?” Wayzz asked.

“I think he had his chance and enough time to use it.” Pollen commented.

“But he was in love with Ladybug!” Daizzi squeaked.

“But he dated Kagami when he tried to forget her!” Tikki argued. “Why not Marinette?”

“I don’t know why you are all so wound up,” Barkk commented, “I like the Felix-guy.”

“I agree about Kagami,” Longg said, “And yet it seems like you chose Felix for her.”

“I didn’t.” Tikki assured them. “Firstly, every time when they were talking I felt her excitement.” She admitted. “But you know that the more people argue with each other, the more they penetrate each other! So at some point it was more about the strength of her emotional reaction than its positive or negative direction that mattered.”

“From love to hate and vice versa?” Roarr asked.

“Exactly.” Tikki smiled. “So I just offered her a meeting place where she didn’t have to follow all the rules and act the way she should, or thought she should. Plus, Marinette could choose to leave the very first time they met. But they both chose to stay in their shared dream together.”

All the kwamis gasped in delight.

Tikki had a smug smile on her face.

“And now their shared dream has become their shared reality.”