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When Marinette was a young child of six who was enthralled with Disney love stories, she formed a very specific idea of how her own love story would play out:
1. She would meet her Prince Charming young! That way they’d have as many years as possible to be in love!
2. They would date for two... no! Four years and then she would marry her Prince Charming: someone who was amazing in every way possible, someone she loved and who loved her to the moon and back, someone who would always like playing dollies with her, and someone who never said mean words like some of the people who bought her Papa and Mama's sweets.
3. She and her Prince would have a fairy tale wedding: the perfect venue, the most beautiful dress of her own design, ponies for everyone to ride, a three tier wedding cake, all her family and friends surrounding them in love and support, and then they’d go to a water park for their honeymoon!
4. They’d have two, no three kids! Named Emma, Louis, and Henry! If their financial situation was stable enough, maybe even a fourth named Marie.
5. They’d have hamsters! So many hamsters! A hamster farm!
This was her list and she was set on sticking to it...
But naturally, as Marinette grew up, her dream life changed, grew, and was refined multiple times.
At nine, Marinette learned that ponies pooped… everywhere! And she didn’t want her wedding to have a smelly poop smell! So no ponies at her wedding!
3. She and her Prince would have a fairy tale wedding: the perfect venue, the most beautiful dress of her own design,
ponies for everyone to ride, a three tier wedding cake, all her family and friends surrounding them in love and support, and then they’d go to a water park for their honeymoon!
At eleven, Marinette decided that, while she still loved playing with dolls, her future husband didn’t have to. Ms. Bustier, her new homeroom teacher, had assured the class that having different hobbies and pastimes was perfectly okay! Someone not liking what you liked didn’t mean you couldn’t be friends with them!
2. They would date for two... no! Four years and then she would marry her Prince Charming: someone who was amazing in every way possible, someone she loved and who loved her to the moon and back,
someone who would always like playing dollies with her, and someone who never said mean words like some of the people who bought her Papa and Mama's sweets.
At thirteen, the first step in her vision happened: Marinette met her Prince Charming and her Prince Charming was none other than the Adrien Agreste, son of fashion mogul Gabriel Agreste.
From the moment she saw him… she disliked him.
But there was a misunderstanding about him being friends with Chloe and Marinette thinking he was just her servant… until he gave her his umbrella and apologized. After she got to know him, Marinette found out how sweet, smart, kind, friendly, and caring Adrien was and felt silly after realizing what actually happened…
But hey! It would be the funniest meet cute story to tell their three - maybe four - children someday!
Unfortunately, the next step in her life plan didn’t happen until they were eighteen.
But many missed confessions, near kisses, meddling- helpful friends, a stint as superheroes with so many identity shenanigans, and a final big boss battle later, it finally happened.
“Adrien, I’ve been trying to say this for years. I love you, all of you! I’ve always loved you!”
“I love you, too. You’re literally the girl of my dreams, Marinette.”
And then they had shared the sweetest kiss that was literally the stuff of fairy tales: their lips touching for the first time as the sunset and the world faded around them.
From there, it felt like Marinette was speed running her own dream life in multiple ways, not just romance wise.
Marinette attended the best designer school in Europe as Adrien dealt with the aftermath of Gabriel being sent to prison. Once that was dealt with, Adrien pursued his passion: baking. This delighted Tom and Sabine who immediately took the twenty year old under their wing. Marinette found a foothold in her future career as Adrien discovered that baking was what he truly wanted to do with the rest of his life.
The two dated throughout it all. Through the hard times of distance and misunderstandings and the easy times of dates and long night talks, the two found themselves falling deeper and deeper in love until all the Dupain-Chengs wore matching expressions of shock and awe as Adrien, at the age of twenty two, dropped to one knee and asked Marinette to marry him at her graduation party.
The answer was a resounding yes.
The intimate wedding happened under a year later with a three tier passion fruit cake, a wedding dress that was hand sewn by Marinette, and was attended by their closest friends and family without a pony in sight.
And their honeymoon was decidedly not at a water park.
Settling on the couch together in their new apartment not too far from her parents’ bakery, Marinette couldn’t help but sigh happily.
Married to the love of her life? Check.
Living in an apartment they paid for themselves? Check.
Interning at the up and coming fashion brand that would more than certainly launch her career? Check.
What would she… What would they do next?
Maybe... maybe children?
Were they ready for that?
She absolultely wanted children with Adrien - she had been picturing their little faces since they were thriteen - but they were newlyweds with time consuming jobs.
But she really wanted kids!
Sensing her speeding thoughts, her husband pressed a kiss to her forehead. “What are you thinking about, Milady?”
“Our future.” She replied honestly.
“What about our future?”
Biting her lip, she considered her words before diving straight in. “Children.” His eyes widened and she quickly went on. “But not now! We’re only twenty three and I just started my job and you’re still taking those business classes so that you can take over the bakery someday. Having children now would be a lot of work and responsibility so I don’t mean having children at this very moment or this year or-.”
Knowing her well by now, Adrien silenced her with a lingering kiss before pulling away and smiling at her word vomit. “Mari. I get you. You want children in the not so distant future.”
Relief filled her. He knew her so well.
“Exactly.” A thoughtful look fell over Adrien’s face for a moment and Marinette wished she could be a fly on the wall inside his mind. “Kitty?”
“What if we started small?” He inquired and her eyebrows knit together.
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve always wanted a pet right? What if we got a pet to take care of?”
A pet?
Did she want a pet?
Did she want to take care of a cute little bird or puppy or snake or-
Her eyes lit up. “A hamster! Can we get a hamster?”
Thoughts of different names flowed through her head and where they’d put its cage and how, after a long day of work, she could take it out and-
“I’m sorry, Bugaboo.” Adrien softly stated. “I’m actually allergic to hamsters,” His cheeks turned pink. “Specifically their pee.”
“Oh.” Was all Marinette could say. Her mind jumped to the hamster farm part of her dream life and quickly updated it from hamsters to pets that her prince could live with.
5.
And last, they’d have hamsters! So many hamsters! A hamster farm!The perfect pet for our family.
Noting her silence, Adrien pulled away just a little. “Are you upset?”
Wrapping her arms around his waist, she shook her head. “Of course not.”
“Are you sure? You were so excited about hamsters a moment ago.”
She waved it away. “Your wellness means more to me than any hamster ever could.” Pressing a kiss to his cheek, she smiled again. “What kind of pet are you thinking about?”
“I was thinking… hoping we could get a cat.” Sadness flowed into his green eyes and Marinette immediately caressed his cheek in comfort. “Ever since we had to give the miraculous back, I’ve missed Plagg. The stinky cheese connoisseur snuck his way into my heart. So having a cat would-”
“Ease some of that pain.” Marinette finished, knowing exactly what he meant and how he felt. She missed and thought about Tikki constantly. “Okay. Let’s get a cat.”
Pulling her into a strong embrace, Adrien’s breath tickled her ear. “Thank you.”
The next day, after extensive research and an impromptu shopping trip, the two walked into a pet adoption center with one goal in mind.
“Welcome!” A sweet looking elderly lady greeted them with a wide smile. “I'm Jennifer. How can I help you today?”
“We’re hoping to adopt one of your sweet kitties today.” Adrien said before turning to coo at one of the cats in an enclosure.
Jennifer nodded. “You’ve come to the right place. We have all types of animals just ready to find their forever home, many of which are cats. Feel free to look around and let me know if you need any assistance.”
“Of course. Thank you.”
Hand in hand, the pair strolled through the building and looked into each cage and stopping every now and then.
“Do you see any you like?” Marinette whispered as Adrien paused to tap against the glass that showed a lizard.
“They’re all so cute.” He admitted as he bent to look at an orange tabby. “I’m not sure how I’ll-”
“Meow.”
The sound was immediately followed by something dropping on Marinette’s shoulders. She froze, knowing she was in a place that housed a ton of animals and it was probably just one of them, and slowly turned to look at what- who was perched on her shoulder. There, eyeing her with big blue eyes, was a small black kitten with splashes of orange all over her fur.
When the two made eye contact, the kitten licked her nose. “Meow.”
Heart beating back at it's normal pace, Marinette relaxed. “Well hello there.”
Adrien chuckled as he stood from his squat. “That was the cutest thing ev-”
“There you are!”
Marinette and Adrien turned and saw the employee walking quickly over to them before scooping up the kitten, who mewled and wiggled in her hands. Spotting the interested faces of the couple, she smiled. “Sorry. This little tortie is a newcomer and she likes to run away and get into things the moment she gets the chance. Such a little scoundrel-”
“We’ll take her.”
Marinette was not at all surprised when the words raced out of her husband’s mouth but it did startle the lady. “Excuse me?”
“If she’s up for adoption, we would love to adopt her.”
Jennifer’s eyes widened. “She is, but I have to warn you that she’s very active and, sometimes, aggr-" She trailed off as the kitten finally squirmed out of her hands and leaped onto Adrien next, nuzzling his cheek and purring softly. Jennifer blinked before smiling. “Well all righty then: seems I'm overruled. Follow me to the front and we’ll take care of all the paperwork.”
Twenty minutes later, Adrien was signing the last paper with the kitten curled in his arms.
The employee beamed at the two of them. “It seems she really likes you two: this is a fated match for sure.”
A blush spread across his face. “Really?”
“Absolutely! I know you two came here to choose a pet, but it seems she chose you.”
Running her fingers over the kitten’s head, Marinette couldn’t help but nod. “You’re right. She did choose us. It’s amazing.”
Adrien leaned over and pressed a kiss against Marinette’s temple. “It’s purrfect.”
Shuffling the papers, the kind worker smiled at them. “Everything looks in order. There’s only one last thing: what are you gonna name your new fur baby?”
Without missing a beat, Marinette and Adrien responded as one. “Camembert.”
The first few days after bringing Camembert home were very taxing for the new cat parents.
As the lady had said, their little kitty was incredibly active. The moment her paws hit the ground, Camembert, Cami for short, zoomed around her new space, exploring her new domain and everything within it. Then she was hopping from shelves and tables, knocking things around and onto the floor in her haste. Thanks to being former superheroes, Marinette and Adrien’s reflexes and reactions were fast enough to save the most breakable objects from an untimely demise.
Some of the other objects? They weren’t so lucky.
“Gotcha!” Adrien cheered as he plucked the kitten straight out of the air in an attempt to jump from the kitchen island to a nearby bookcase.
“Meow!” The cat seemed to say indignantly.
“I can’t just let you continue to run around like this, Cami! You’ll probably end up in an unfurrtunate situation!”
“Meow!” She seemed to groan.
“What? Puns are great!”
Rolling her eyes, Marinette couldn’t help but to smile at the two. “We’ll have to train her if we want to keep our frames up.”
“Yeah.” Adrien agreed as he plopped down on the couch next to her. Cami immediately curled up in his lap and Marinette reached over to scratch between the kitten’s ears and was rewarded with a purr. “How do we start?”
“Majority of the websites say using treats as rewards and clickers are the best methods.” Pulling up the most recent website she’d read, Marinette continued, “It says, with both, training should be less than twenty minutes, focused on one skill, start simple, and right before meal time is the best time.”
Adrien nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”
Having Cami around was like having another part of Marinette’s dream life fall into place.
Training the kitten wasn’t always easy, but as time went on, she seemed to learn and adapt to her new home as Adrien and Marinette adapted to having to care for her. Having such a responsibility was new to both of them - since neither had a pet growing up - but the two truly enjoyed the newest member of their family, especially as her personality started to really shine through.
Much like the lover of her namesake, Cami was a lazy cat.
Most of the day, she preferred to lounge around the apartment either on the window sills that provided a wonderful spot to sunbathe in the afternoons, on the armchair that had been a wedding gift from Luka and Juleka, or in either of their laps. When either or both of them were home and sitting down, Cami could always be found in their laps, curled in a tiny- and then not so tiny after a few months - ball, purring and tail swishing happily from side to side, just content to lie there and do nothing.
In the early days of having her with them, Marinette always spotted tears in her husband’s eyes before he would blink and shake his head while whispering, “Just like him” .
It both warmed and broke her heart that Cami reminded Adrien of Plagg because she could see just how much love and affection he'd held for the tiny destruction god but it was also a reminder that they would never see him - or Tikki - ever again.
The Guardians had made sure to emphasize that part when they came to collect the box from Fu after Hawk Moth’s defeat.
But, little by little, the sadness dwindled and joy and happiness took its place as Cami grew into and participated in big moments for their family.
The sleepy cat was napping on top of Marinette’s phone during a quiet evening in, so the first call from Alya went unnoticed by the couple.
And then the second.
And the third.
Finally, Adrien’s phone rang and Adrien answered to the sounds of screaming in the background.
“Nino?”
“Yo! Marinette wasn’t answering her phone and Alya’s going a bit crazy with worry!”
Glancing over to his wife, Adrien nodded. “Cami’s probably sleeping on it. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, but y’all need to get to the hospital as quickly as you can!”
“Why?”
There was a pause and when Nino spoke again, his voice was all choked up. “I’m about to be a dad… and you two are about to be godparents.”
Many, many hours later, Cami curled in her owner’s lap as they gushed over pictures of little Charlie Lahiffe.
The mischievous cat had decided to take another nap on the couch on top of the mail Adrien had just put there barely moments before. One of these pieces of mail was an invitation from Marinette’s boss for Marinette to participate in the most prestigious fashion show for newcomers. Neither human had known it was there until Cami woke up - as Adrien disliked moving or waking the feline when she was asleep because she was ‘just too cute to move’ - and the official glossy material caught Adrien’s eye.
The moment after Marinette opened the letter, her scream filled the apartment and Cami - who had already found one of her many toys to mess with - didn’t even startle as she was used to her owner’s loud excitement.
Naturally, Cami soaked up every ounce of attention as Adrien and Marinette decorated the apartment and showered the feline with love and attention and gifts to celebrate the first anniversary of Cami becoming a member of their family.
The camera shy cat even took a few pictures to commemorate the day.
This time, Cami had the zoomies and was zooming around the living room without a care in the world as Marinette tried to calm her down.
It was one of those rare situations where the clicker wasn’t working so Marinette had resorted to chasing Cami around with one of her favorite snacks but, overworked and feeling very fatigued, Marinette couldn’t keep up with her.
Cami sprinted into the master bath and, as a last ditch attempt, Marinette quickly ran inside and slammed the door, trapping them both inside.
It did not stop the mayhem.
Instead, Cami continued hopping and jumping and running and sliding in the small space and, properly defeated, Marinette slumped to the ground against the door. She had accepted her fate and groggily tracked the cat’s movement all the way up until the cat slid into the cabinet doors under the sink, knocking one of the doors open and some of the things inside of it out.
Groaning, Marinette began picking up the fallen objects.
“This is why you need to calm down, Kitty! You’re gonna hurt…” Marinette trailed off as the sight of the tampon box gave her pause.
When was the last time?
A month or two ago if she remembered correctly.
She was late.
Omg.
She was late!
That meant-
That could mean!
For the first time all afternoon, Cami paused in her antics as one of her favorite humans scrambled off the floor and out of the room.
The cat was perched on the sink when two pink lines appeared on every single test - five in total - and Marinette’s face stretched into the biggest smile.
Cami was snuggled in her other favorite human’s lap three days later when Marinette handed him a small gift. The cat looked on curiously as Adrien opened the gift, pulled out a small knitted sweater that read ‘Papa’ across the front, and froze.
“Papa?” Green eyes wide and shimmering, Adrien’s hands began to shake. “Does that mean-?”
Just as tearful as her husband, Marinette nodded. “I’m pregnant!”
And then Cami was being swept into a family hug.
Eight months and a week stay with Tom and Sabine later, Cami watched patiently from her spot on the island as Adrien set the baby carrier on the floor before helping his sore wife get comfortable on the couch.
“Can I get you anything?” He asked, the energy and excitement of finally having them both home after the extended hospital stay making his body tremble.
“Some water please?”
“Of course, of course.”
As Adrien rushed off to the kitchen, Cami hopped down from the island and padded over to the carrier. Marinette wasn’t worried as the cat approached the carrier. Cami had been great - if not a bit distant - whenever Charlie had been around so she knew Cami was safe.
The cat paused and sat in front of the carrier, staring at the tiny newborn for a long time: long enough for Adrien to return with a cup of ice cold water and a heating pad that, once against her back, had Marinette sighing in relief.
Adrien truly was her Prince Charming.
Once she was comfortable, he took a seat next to her and watched as their cat observed their child. “What do you think she’s thinking about?”
Marinette shrugged. “I’m not sure. She didn’t show this much interest when Charlie was that tiny.”
After a few more minutes, Cami turned towards her owners and tilted her head. “Meow?”
Marinette smiled. “That’s Emma. She’s our newest family member.”
Cami looked at the couple for a few more minutes before looking back at the tiny baby, sniffing the itty bitty toes that were sticking out of a hand sewn blanket, and plunking down right in front of the carrier like a very small guard dog.
“Awww!” Marinette cooed. “I think she likes her.”
Smiling, Adrien wrapped an arm around Marinette’s shoulder. “She’s gonna be the best furry big sister.”
And Cami was.
For every milestone Emma hit, Cami was right there:
Meowing the new parents awake at baby’s first fever.
Watching from her seat on the window sill during feedings, changings, and playtimes.
Nuzzling and cuddling her during those times as well.
Unintentionally making Emma giggle with her cat antics.
Walking alongside Emma as she learned to crawl then walk.
Curling up in Emma’s tiny lap once she was able to sit up by herself.
Sleepily cuddling Emma through her nap times and eating alongside her during meals.
And so much more.
Cami truly loved her family as her family truly loved her…
Which made it one of the worst days for the family when, a few months after a family trip, Adrien and Marinette took Cami to the vet because she’d been behaving strangely and found out that she was sick.
Fatally sick.
There were no treatments or prescriptions that could help or change her fate, the only thing that could be done was to put her down so that their sweet little kitty wouldn’t suffer as she met her end.
The dream life Marinette had built with her Prince Charming and Princess crumbled just a bit as they said their goodbyes to the lazy, sweet, kind, caring, beautiful, sassy, amazing cat that, despite being with them for only four years, felt like she’d always been with them.
The hardest part that Marinette hadn’t expected was leaving the building with nothing but a tiny vase filled with her ashes and their eighteen month old child looking back at the building and then at her.
“Kitty?”
It had taken everything within her to hold back the tears as she remembered the tips the grief counselors inside had given and Emma stared at her with wide green eyes. “I’m sorry, Sweetie. Cami is dead. She’s not here anymore.”
Emma blinked again. “Kitty?”
“I’m sorry.”
Emma’s eyes scanned her mother’s face and whatever she saw there caused big fat tear drops to fall down her little cheeks before her head dropped against Marinette’s chest. “Kitty.”
That night, as Emma slept in her room, Marinette and Adrien sobbed and sobbed until it felt like there were no more tears left.
A week passed and, while the family still mourned their loss, the atmosphere lightened a bit. The sight of Cami’s toys, bed, and food bowl still brought tears to their eyes, but each day it seemed to get a little easier… or more tolerable, at least, until Adrien pulled Marinette to the side one night after dinner.
“Adrien?”
“I know it’s been hard and that we all miss her.” He started. “Is it… Can we watch some of the old videos we have of her? I just… I miss her so much and-”
Understanding flooded Marinette and she quickly pressed a soft kiss against his lips to stop his rambling. “Yes, babe. We can definitely do that.”
So once dinner was all cleaned up, the two sat on the couch with Emma nuzzled between them and Adrien linked his phone to the TV. The shared family account that held all their pictures and videos since their first anniversary popped up and Emma immediately started clapping.
“Kitty. Kitty!”
As the first video of Cami played - one where she’d been at the apartment for a week and they were trying the clicker training with her - and Marinette immediately felt tears fill her eyes as the tiny tortie kitten’s head tilted with every click of the button.
That was their kitten!
And even though getting through the first few pictures and videos hurt, Marinette felt comforted by Emma pressed against her and Adrien’s arm wrapped around her. Their love and presence was all Marinette needed to get through their shared loss.
By the time they got to the videos of Cami and Emma cuddling and playing together, her tears weren’t sad: they were happy. Happy at how such a little kitten had filled their short time together with so much joy, laughter, and love. Happy at how their daughter had gotten to experience what it was like to have a furry companion by her side every day of her life. Happy that Cami would live on in these memories and in their hearts no matter how much time passed.
Happy that Cami had chosen them.
Looking at her husband, she saw the same happy tears reflected in his eyes. Leaning into him, she breathed a kiss against his lips. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
And for the rest of the night - or until it was time for little Emma to go to sleep - the tiny family mourned and celebrated the life of their first pet.
Camembert "Cami" Agreste was gone, but Marinette knew that she would always be a part of her dream life.
Always.
