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She extended an arm over the small fan on her desk, the bright ribbons trying to fly away from it only succeeding in tickling her arm. Marinette thought for a moment—more like stared at the fan with a “thinking face” for a few seconds, she lost the ability to actually think earlier, during today’s homework date—then picked it up and pointed the flighting ribbons to her homework partner’s face.
Félix shrieked at the sudden gust of air and red stripes tickling his face, flailing the book in his hand in the attack’s direction.
Marinette hastily placed the fan back on the desk, bending under it to escape Félix’s counterattacks and to hold the laughter in her stomach. She failed immensely in both.
“What was that for?” a flushed Félix asked, eyes snapping from her to the fan as he slowly realized what happened.
Marinette fell back on her chair, biting her lips to muffle her laughter, and shrugged. Félix squinted at her, then humphed as he straightened up in his seat and reached for the textbook again.
She leaned an elbow on the desktop, chin on her knuckle, and pulled her own textbook over. She gazed at it for a total of twenty-two seconds and sixty-four leg bounces before she glanced at Félix.
He idly tapped his pencil on his notebook, lips pursing slightly as he gazed at the textbook slightly under it. His skin was at its usual pale tone again and he soundlessly mouthed the words, which meant he was actually focused on what he read and not just looking at it to seem like he was reading. He seemed peaceful.
Marinette reached over with her toe and tickled his foot through the sole of his sock.
This shriek was shriekier than the last, and Marinette full on cackled as he stumbled out of his chair.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” She shot up and ran to him, genuinely worried that he fell over, but still unable to contain her laughter. “Are you hurt? I–” Félix reached past her offered hand and grabbed her wrist, pulling her to the floor besides him, a shriek of her own falling out.
Slightly dazed, she tried to sit up, but millions of feathers wafted up her arm, then around her neck, and she fell to her back, curling up on herself as laughter broke out of her chest. She tried to push Félix away, but the paintbrush stroking over her nape and cheek crushed all her defenses and she could just barely reach his face and arm.
“I wield! I–” She wheezed. “I wield!”
Félix halted, fluffy brush held threateningly over her throat as he narrowed his eyes at her. Marinette just smiled innocently, muscles relaxing now that no tickling weapon was being used.
He cautiously stood up, brush still extended in her direction. Marinette hopped up, hands up to show surrender. He hummed, then slightly turned away.
Grave mistake.
Marinette kicked the nearest pillow on the floor up and whacked it on him.
Félix eeped, raising his arm to cover his face then jumped to another pillow, ducking from Marinette’s onslaught. He used it to parry her next attack, then threw a ball of yarn she hadn’t seen him taking over it.
It hit her straight in the face and Félix used the distraction to run to the attic’s loft.
“Hey!”
Marinette pulled the bed covers under him, making him fumble. He kicked it off to the floor, crawling further onto the loft, as he raised two pillows over his head with a wicked grin.
Marinette snatched up her basket, yarns falling to the floor, to deflect the attacks as she ran towards the desk. She jumped on it, raising her head over the loft’s ledge as Félix fell back on the bed on it. He shoved his socked foot on her face, but Marinette held firm, pushing herself up with all her might and tickling him.
Félix fell laughing on the bed, blindly kicking in her direction in a meek attempt to stop the tickling storm, but Marinette wouldn’t be easily defeated.
He pushed his head closer to Marinette’s, a hand going to her hair, taking advantage of the millisecond of confusion at his face being suddenly so close to press their lips together.
“That’s cheating!” Marinette yelped, giggling as she fumbled on the desk.
Félix shrugged, biting his lip, the red in his face matching Marientte’s own face. “All’s fair in tickle war!”
More giggles filled the room, their homework laying forgotten on the desk as pillows, yarns, and fabric flew at their faces. Marinette had gotten one of her feather earrings and was using it as her main tickling weapon while Félix gathered all the brushes he could find, also using a canvas as a shield.
She didn’t know how much time had passed, and Félix would most definitely get a tiny bit mad once he remembered they were supposed to be doing homework, but the mirth in his eyes, his laughter, and on the kisses he’d steal from her was more than worth it.
Then, footsteps thumped up the stairs from the other side of the attic’s door.
“Marinette? Félix?”
As quick as lightning, they both rushed back to their seats. Plopping on her chair, Marinette raised the first textbook she put her hands on over her face as Félix pulled the chair by her side and grabbed the other side of the book to also look at it.
The trapdoor creaked open and Sebastian’s head poked into the room. He blinked at the disarrayed room, turning from the uncovered bed, to the thrown pillows, to the toppled basket, and the scattered yarns. Finally, he settled his gaze on the teens that had obviously done some kind of exertion staring inconspicuously at him, heads tilted as if his presence was the only unusual thing in this room.
He clicked his tongue, opening his mouth, but seemed to think better of it and just said, “Dinner’s in an hour, don’t tear the place down before then.”
“Sure thing!”
“Hmhm.”
The trapdoor clicked shut.
Marinette and Félix sighed relievedly then turned to reorganize their materials. A peaceful lull fell over them as the scrapes of pencil and the fan’s whirr overtook all other sounds. Marinette lasted forty-eight leg bounces before reaching for the fan.