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If you ever get a chance to visit Paris, many would suggest visiting the Dupain-Cheng shop. It’s a wonderful, warm, and welcoming place. It was filled with a sweet comforting scent that lulls your mind at ease and treats that delight your senses. There you’ll see everything you would ever need for the day for a reasonable price.
Oh, no, not the Dupain-Cheng bakery.
No. In an age where magic and myth were real, anyone who lives in the city of romance would tell you to go to the Dupain-Cheng Magic Shop, Miraculous Marinette. The owner was a young and capable witch. Sharp witted and welcoming to all, she was already a master at potions, charms, and spells at the tender age of eighteen.
Take a step inside her shop and be amazed. You’ll be greeted by the sweet scent of apples, honey, and magnolia flowers and a cheery bell like voice from the shop’s namesake. Often times, you’ll see the young witch sewing at the counter or brewing up specialty potions for her clients.
The bell on the stain glass door rang and a confident boisterous voice called out.
“Hey Marinette!” Alya Cesaire greeted happily with a package under her arm.
“Hi Alya!” a young navy haired witch greeted back before continuing to tend to her client, “Now Madam Ferdinand, brew a teaspoon of this in a cup of hot water with a spoonful of honey any time you have a migraine. And place this under your pillow before bed to help you sleep better at night. I wrote the instructions on the bags just in case you forget.” Marinette instructed and handed the paper bag full of teas and charms to a kind old lady.
“Oh, thank you Marinette. After trying your remedies, I don’t think I can go back to what I used to use.” Madam Ferdinand thanked profusely.
“You’re very welcome! I’m glad I’m able to help you. Come by or call any time you need assistance.” Marinette waved to the elderly woman and watched Alya open the door for the sweet lady. After Madam Ferdinand left, Alya placed a package on the polished wood countertop.
“Rose asked me to drop off some things when she learned I was stopping by!” Alya explained and Marinette thanked her best friend for the delivery. The witch opened the package to find sea glass bottles with cork stoppers along with dried flowers, herbs, seeds, crystals, things easily recognizable to to humans and non magic folk. Then there were things they didn’t recognize. A jar of ground dragon scales, locks of mermaid hair, bottles of carefully sealed Banshee shrieks, pints of Undine tears, tufts of werewolf fur, pixi dust, molted fairy wings, and the one ingredient Marinette needed the most: A unicorn’s horseshoe.
Marinette carefully lifted the curved metal shoe out of the box and unwrapped the paper off of it carefully. Alya was used to seeing magical items thanks to Marinette but seeing a unicorn horseshoe was new. It was hard to describe the color as it was white with constantly changing undertones of gold, blue, green, pink, and other colors she had never seen before. It was studded with gems only mountain dwarves know how and where to find. It was smaller than she thought considering the amount of packing it was covered in. In fact, it was smaller than her cell phone. Marinette inspected the shoe carefully before deeming it a great quality and perfect for her work. She placed it next to her potion making station before getting to work on a new potion.
The young witch asked her best friend to help her read the ingredients and instructions for a potion and Alya happily agreed. Marinette’s grandmother had given her one of her potion grimoires she had when she was Marinette’s age. When Alya first saw it, she was startled as the book felt like skin and had a moving eye carved from an alexandrite stone. Marinette explained that it was Manticore leather. But now Alya was used to its appearance and it’s function.
“Show me a potion for a broken heart, please.” Alya requested politely. The grimoire’s pages flew all on their own until it stopped at Grandmother Gina’s tried and tested potion for healing a broken heart.
“Okay! 8oz of water from Undine’s fountain, a handful of pomegranate seeds, six drops of distilled sun light, a pinch of bamboo salt, one mermaid pearl, a semiplume feather of a pegasus, a teaspoon of melisseus flower honey, a witch’s yarn, a spoon full of sugar, morning dew ink and one shoe of a young unicorn.” Alya listed off and Marinette checked off everything she had that was needed.
Alya then read the instructions to make the potion. Boil the water and mix with honey then cool. Grind the pearl fine and mix with sugar and salt. Muddle the seeds with the sugar mix in a pestle. Burn the vane off the feather and add to puree. Slowly mix with pegasus rhacis while pouring cooled honey water. Transfer potion to desired vessel. Add liquid sun light. With a witch’s yarn, tie unicorn horseshoe to the vessel with a dropper knot. Dip pegasus rhacis in morning dew ink and sign vessel with the heartbroken one’s name. Whisper the name of they who broke one’s heart to complete potion.
Marinette did as she was read to and placed the bottle to the counter for Alya to marvel at. The bottle was filled with a pearlescent red liquid that had a slight glow and the bottle was tied with Marinette’s hand spun pink yarn with her cursive signature.
“Man, I wish I could make something like this!” Alya awed at the bottle.
“I think you’d be a wonderful witch! Too bad a witch’s magic is hereditary. If you had made this potion, it would just be diluted juice.” Marinette chuckled.
“So…how are you feeling after…you know…?” Alya asked carefully.
“it’s okay, Alya, you can ask how I’m feeling after Adrien dumped me.” Marinette smiled tiredly.
“Okay well I’m gonna be mad for you! How could he dump you so suddenly like that!? And on your birthday of all days!? You know! The day where we literally celebrate YOU!!” Alya began ranting.
“It’s okay, Alya. I’m doing much better now thanks to this.” Marinette shook her potion for emphasis. “I mean, remember how bad it was before I took this stuff?”
“Please don’t remind me. We were barely able to get you to sit up let alone get you out of bed. We were so worried about you.” Alya shuddered at the memory.
“Aw Als, you’re the best!” Marinette cooed and hugged her best friend.
“I try to be!” Alya laughed and patted Marinette’s back. The two chatted away while Marinette worked on more potions and charms when the bell on her door rang. Marinette’s usual cheery welcome died on her tongue when she saw who had stepped through her door.
He was tall with a mop of blue dyed hair that needed a re-dye but it somehow suited him just fine. He had patches of aqua green scales on his exposed skin which matched his dazzling aqua green eyes. Both scales and eyes glittered and sparkled under the lights.
The customer smiled kindly and waved before pulling out his phone and typed away. When held up, Marinette read “I was told by my sister this is the shop for magic potions.”
“Y-yes, you’ve come to the right p-place. I-I’m Ma-Ma-Marinette! Um…w-what can I do for you?” Marinette blushed and stammered when she looked into the young man’s eyes. The customer sighed in relief and typed away again.
“That’s great! I’ve been all over town to find a potion to bring back my voice and I have a show tonight.” it read.
“Lost your voice from too much singing or magic?” Alya asked curiously.
“Magic.” the phone read.
Alya nodded her head and noticed how the customer stared at Marinette. The kind gentle goo goo eyes Marinette used to give Adrien. Alya also noticed the slight fidgeting and blueish blush on the customer’s cheeks and ears. She followed his gaze and noticed a familiar and similar blush radiating from the back of Marinette’s neck.
“Soooo….you got a name to go with that pretty face?” Alya snickered and knew from Marinette’s flinch that the witch was also listening.
Alya read the phone and spoke rather loudly, “Luka? Oh! You must be Juleka’s older brother! It’s nice to meet you, Luka! I’m Alya and that there is my friend Marinette. Trust me when I say she’s the best witch in town! She’s super helpful, super nice, and super s-i-n-g-l-e~.” Alya guffawed and saw Luka’s eyes glitter with hope.
“Alya!” Marinette whipped around to reprimand her friend. Alya would have felt bad if Marinette wasn’t bug eyed with her cheeks flaming redder than her hat. The young witch caught the customer’s eyes and cleared her throat.
“Ah…H-Here you go! One voice restoration potion!” Marinette handed the light purple vial to the handsome customer. Luka took the potion and as he did, his hand brushed against Marinette’s, making both of them jump and blush. It was all rather amusing to Alya.
Luka opened the vial and downed the potion in one gulp. Visibly cringing at the minty bitter drink, Marinette offered him her signature pink ladybug candy which Luka took gratefully. Luka popped the boiled sweet in his mouth and sighed in relief as the sweetness spread throughout his mouth.
“Thank you.” Luka was surprised his voice came back so quickly.
“Y-y-y-y-you’re welcome!” Marinette blushed brighter than before upon hearing Luka’s gentle sultry voice.
“Um, how much do I owe you?” Luka asked as he grabbed his wallet.
“Oh! Uh, it’s six euros.” Marinette responded. Luka handed her a ten euro note and Marinette added it to the register and gave Luka his change and receipt.
“Thank you, Ma-Ma-Marinette. I hope I’ll get to see you again.” Luka smiled and waved before leaving the shop. Alya was staring at Marinette who was still waving at the door in a love struck daze.
“I think he likes you.” Alya smirked. That snapped Marinette out of her reverie.
“W-what!? N-No way, he’s just really nice…and cute.” Marinette huffed.
“And then you were mush the moment he spoke.” Alya swooned dramatically.
“He better like her after that potion!” another voice argued. Both girls looked and saw Plagg coming out of his napping spot (which happened to be Marinette’s knitting basket by the window) with Tikki in tow.
“Why is that?” Alya asked unaware of the dread on Marinette’s face.
“I tried to warn him, Marinette! But he wouldn’t listen to me!” Tikki crossed her arms and huffed at her fellow familiar.
“Plagg…what did you do?” Marinette anxiously demanded.
“I boiled a love potion into sweets.” Plagg admitted proudly.
“WHAT!?!?” Both Alya and Marinette shouted.
“Since Adrien broke your heart, I thought you could win him back with sweets so I boiled a love potion into some candy, that’s all, no need to thank me!” Plagg patted himself on the back.
“W-what color were the sweets?” Alya asked worriedly.
“Pink, just like Marinette.” Plagg answered with a smile.
“W-what shape were they?” Marinette asked fearfully.
“Like Ladybugs, duh! What else would they be?” Plagg responded, still unaware of what he had just done.
“When did you make them???” Marinette asked in growing horror.
“This morning while you were asleep! Even wrapped them myself!” Plagg puffed out his chest proudly.
"I did try to warn him not to!" Tikki glared at her fellow familiar.
“Then…that means…” Alya slowly looked to Marinette who was shaking like a leaf.
“PLAGG!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!? My boiled sweets are for customers to rinse the bitter taste out of their mouths!!! Oh my god… I…I put those sweets from the kitchen into the jar on the counter!" Marinette looked at the Venetian glass jar full of pink and white wrapped drop candies like they were her worst nightmare
"Ohhhhhh nooooooo." Alya's mouth grew wider and wider at the connecting dots.
"…I….I JUST DRUGGED THAT HOT SIREN!!!!” Marinette shrieked louder than a banshee.