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The pedestal with the stupidly expensive vase that his parents liked to show off to visitors smashed to the ground, taking the ridiculously expensive vase with it.
“Come on Tim!”
A six-year-old Marinette yanked a young seven-year-old Tim’s hand, leading him into his parent’s office. They could hear the footsteps of Mrs. McIlvaine coming.
“Quick, hide!” he whispered as he shut the door.
Marinette ducked behind the curtains. Tim jumped into the trunk that his father had at the end of his desk, and closed the lid.
They waited until the footsteps died down. Marinette popped out from her hiding place, but Tim never reappeared.
After a few moments, Marinette called out quietly, “Tim? Where did you go?”
“I-I’m stuck!” he screeched out in panic, the sound muffled by the trunk.
Marinette rushed over and opened the latch that had caught.
She held out a hand to help him up.
“My hero,” Tim gushed dramatically. She laughed as she yanked him up.
His hand was resting on a funny shaped box with patterns on it. He peeked inside to see a pretty ring with a paw print on it. Grinning, he took the box, which likely belonged to his mother, and pocketed it.
They ran outside of the manor and into the garden.
Marinette’s dad, Tom, was outside filming the preparations for the party his family was throwing. He had his eye in the viewfinder, panning around with the gigantic camera. His parents had sprung for the latest studio quality camera for the event. He stopped panning when he saw the two children.
Tim decided to play it up for the camera. He had just planned on giving her the ring inside as a thank you, but this was funnier.
“Marinette, you saved my life. I can never repay you for it.” He got down on one knee and Marinette gave him a confused look. “Will you marry me?”
Marinette’s eyes went wide, before she saw the camera and laughed. “Yes!”
Tim opened up the box all the way this time to take out the ring. There was a bright light, and a ball of light flew around them both.
When the glowing stopped, the ring was still there, but now, there was a floating, tiny black cat there as well. It yawned and did a flip in the air.
“Hey! I’m Plagg, your new kwami… Wow you’re young. Which one of you is my holder?”
Marinette tilted her head in confusion. “Holder?” She held out her hand to shake the tiny paw. “I’m Marinette.”
Tim poked it from behind. “What are you?”
“I already said – I’m a kwami! The kwami of destruction.”
“Right… I’m Tim.”
“So, who does the ring belong to?” Plagg asked again.
“Marinette. I just gave it to her.” He sounded a bit jealous now.
He hadn’t known it was a magic ring with a sprite inside it. If he had known, he probably, okay totally, would have kept it and given her another one. Regardless, he got up off his knees and put the ring on her still outstretched finger. When he did, the ring changed to a delicate silver ring with a pink jewel.
One day he would have to get her a real, normal one.
“Tim, we have to show our parents! This is amazing!”
“No! No one can know about me!” Plagg flew in front of her face as she turned to go tell her dad.
“Uhm, isn’t it a bit too late for that?” Tim asked.
He pointed to Tom, videoing the whole thing with his eye stuck behind the lens and the other closed shut. Tom waved back.
“Oh that? Nah. We can’t be seen on camera. You two just look like you’re talking to each other.”
They had an amazing time that day, playing and talking with Plagg, while his parents put on their party. Plagg mostly hid in Marinette’s hair while others were around, but occasionally he flew out to get snacks or cause a little mayhem.
It was wonderful… until Marinette had to return home to Paris with her parents.
She was told to take off her ring and put it in her bag so she wouldn’t lose such an amazing, expensive gift from Tim on her trip.
With it, Plagg disappeared.
~~~~
Marinette and Tim were now in their twenties. Tim had reunited with her in their teens, and they had begun dating for real this time.
But the purpose of this trip in particular was burning a hole in his pocket.
A small pink diamond ring, much like one he remembered her having as a kid, sat in a box in his pants pocket.
He had wanted to propose after dinner, but Tom had decided that it was home movie night. So, they all sat down on the couch and reminisced about when they were little. He was pretty sure Tom was just torturing him. He knew what was supposed to happen that night.
“Oh, this one was one of my favourites!” Tom announced as he pulled out the old VHS tape. “You two were so cute. Proposing and imaginary friends.”
He paused before adding, a confused look on his face, “It was a bit strange you both had the same one. Jack mentioned you going on about Plagg at home too, Tim.”
“Plagg! I forgot about Plagg.” Tim thought back on their imaginary sprite friend. “He was a flying cat sprite.”
They watched as the young versions of themselves were caught on film, Tim down on one knee, proposing to her after saving his life. He couldn’t remember what it was she had saved him from. Likely from himself, like she did every day now.
They heard her saying yes. They watched the wonder they had of their imaginary friend zooming around them. It was actually impressive that they had coordinated well enough to move in the same patterns, as if they actually were watching the same thing move around.
“I always figured you two were too old for imaginary friends, but it seemed to work for you,” Sabine added in as they watched it together. “And when Tom showed me, it was just so sweet. I thought maybe it would continue, but you both seemed to forget a week or so after we got home.”
“Oh yeah! I remember that now!” Marinette piped in. “I still have the ring somewhere… I should go get it!”
Marinette went to get up, but Tim stopped her.
“Actually, uhm, Marinette, I was wondering if I could talk to you a moment? Alone?”
He would have done it in front of her parents, but he didn’t want to pressure her into saying yes, particularly after watching a video of the younger her already agreeing. What if she said no this time?
“Sure.”
They headed towards her room, and she started digging through her trunk. Tim took a deep breath and knelt down on one knee, waiting for her to stop digging and turn around.
“Found it!” she exclaimed delightedly after a minute.
She opened up the ornate Chinese box which (Wow, younger him had really stolen something expensive from his parents. It was amazing they hadn’t said anything.) contained the ring he had given her as a child. She turned around as it opened and gasped, seeing Tim down on one knee.
Tim was about to ask her, when the room lit up with a light that looked oddly familiar. A ball of green light flew around the room before stopping in front of them.
“Hey kiddos – haven’t we done this before?” Plagg asked.
“Plagg?!”
“Plagg! You mean he was real??” Tim asked incredulously.
“Of course I’m real. What did you think I was? Some imaginary friend?” Plagg asked sarcastically.
“Well…” Tim hedged.
Then Marinette gasped as her eyes settled on Tim, still kneeling in front of her. “Tim…?”
“Well, he’s right,” he responded, trying to get over the shock of his imaginary friend being real. “We have done this before. Only, uhm, for real this time.” His entire planned speech had just gone out the window. He held out his own ring to her, but took the one he had given her as a child out of the box instead. “I guess I have two this time.” He chuckled lightly.
“Marinette, you save me every day. Just like when we were kids. I may not remember what drove me to ask the first time,” he started when Plagg piped in.
“You locked yourself in a trunk.”
Embarrassed, he plodded on. “Right. Well, no trunks this time. Just you and me… and Plagg,” he added. “Will you marry me? Again?”
Marinette’s face was flushed as she nodded, before exclaiming, much like she had before, “Yes!”, but this time, she launched herself into his arms and started kissing him.
“Yeuck,” Plagg said from behind him. “Mushy stuff. I’m just going to go sneak myself some cheese while you’re busy.”
Tim waved him off without breaking away from her.
When they finally broke apart, he held out both boxes, confused as to what to do. “Uh, which… which do you want…?”
“Both!” she said happily, and he placed the one he had given her as a kid on her right ring finger. It turned into a plain silver band… One that could easily pass as a wedding ring. She held out her left expectantly. He finally showed her the engagement ring he had bought. “Oh Tim, it’s gorgeous. Thank you.”
“Aww, so cute. Just like when you were kids!” her dad’s voice popped up from the crack in the floor where her trap door was. There was an old fashioned camera lens sticking through. Clearly her father had recorded the whole thing and watched through the viewfinder.
Plagg had dodged another close call at being seen again.