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Chapter Text

In another world, there existed two kingdoms. Though their boundaries placed them side by side, they couldn’t be more different. The one kingdom, set in a field of colorful blooms and fragrant fauna, teeming with beautiful creatures belonged to the Fairies. Elegant, delicate, tiny creatures who had wings made of gossamer and shaped like butterflies, perfectly tailored to the openness of their surroundings. There were others of course, but the Fairies ruled, and those under their thumb considered themselves blessed. Benevolent, if not a taf mischievous, by nature the land prospered and flourished and there was little strife to be found outside of petty problems. It was -to those who lived there- as close to paradise as anything could ever be.

On the other side of the border lay the Dark Forest. Much like its namesake implied it was a large gathering of trees that reached higher than any eye of its inhabitants could see. Sparse sunlight would filter through the dark green canopies, allowing for growth of nothing but the hardiest of plants. And those that were made for survival were not made for beauty- not in the eyes of any average beholder. So too, were the inhabitants of this strange and foreboding land. Goblins and Imps and beings of so much intermixing of the species they were something entirely new. The beast who ruled it went by the title of Hawkmoth.

Along the border of these two kingdoms a special type of flower grew. Primroses, which could bloom between light and shadow. A powerful property used in one of the most powerful spells. Chiefly, love potions created by the Rosa Peace fairy. Or, they were, before the Dark Forest banned their creation and captured the fairy, imprisoning her to make certain love potions would never be created again. But what would a love story be, without some mixed up lovers?

The ruler of the Fairy Kingdom had only two daughters to his name. The eldest was Nathalie, a headstrong yet practical girl with lustrous black hair and gleaming blue eyes. The other was Marinette, ten years Nathale’s junior who had been dropped off at their doorstep nineteen years prior. Marinette shared the same physical features as her adopted sister, with the exception of a smattering of freckles that bridged across her nose under her eyes. Everyone agreed that if it had not been made as an announcement no one would ever have been able to tell they weren’t blood relations. The real difference between the two, however, came from their wings. Marinette’s wings were a brilliant crimson color, edged in black. Nathalie’s were a lustrous amethyst hue, with the same edging but differently shaped, with the black edging jagged and spiky where Marinette’s had a softer curve to it.

But today was a special day. Today was the wedding day of Nathalie to a Fairy knight by the name of Sebastian, and the bride to be was so excited. When the betrothal had first been announced she’d been wary, Sebastian had been one of the best looking knights in her father’s guard and as such had come with a reputation. But he had done the gentlemanly thing and courted her… at least Nathalie was positive he had. Their conversations had mostly detailed his own exploits and adventures as he’d risen through the ranks to be afforded the honor of marrying her. Such a romantic, and such a way with words. And yet, Nathalie for all her anticipation and giddiness, still had some doubts.

She had no qualms about her own character. The problem lay with her perception by the masses. Nathalie’s personality for the most part was logic and stratagem and diplomacy. She was a bit tenacious when she wanted something, and a bit headstrong with how she went after it, but she could always work a situation to her favor. These traits were all fine and good for a future regent of course, and had she been a man she likely would have been lauded and fawned over by her people for her dedication to her land. As a female though… she heard the whispers from years past, saying how she was cold and hard to approach. All the things a woman shouldn’t be. All the things Marinette, despite being raised in the same household by the same people, was not.

Being courted by Sebastian had changed Nathalie, and she was so in love with him it was a change for the better. She was becoming more open with her emotions, her happiness. Even now she was flitting about in a lovestruck daze, humming and singing to herself as she prepared a gift for her intended. Petals from a daisy here, one from a dandelion there, all to bring out his features in the best way possible. This was their big day after all. Of course, Nathalie was so preoccupied with making her gift that she didn’t seem to notice the damage she was leaving in her wake. Bumping into other creatures, disrupting the flow of traffic, at one point nearly dropping a flightless infant from down near the elf village off a bridge because she just wasn’t paying attention. Adrien, an elf who had been practically raised in the palace alongside Marinette chased after her, yelling his hellos and congratulations. The whole kingdom was celebrating this day.

Of course, everyone was so busy celebrating the impending nuptials neither they nor Nathalie noticed when the crown princess crossed the borderline of her own kingdom. A few moments later though, she noticed. Nathalie looked around, clutching the boutonniere tightly to her chest and somewhat crushing it in her grip. From above a pink and yellow petal floated down onto her face. Free hand gripping it Nathalie let out a soft squeak of terror. It couldn’t be…

“Primroses?”

Growls and grumbles were her answer. Nathalie looked up where the petal had fallen to see creatures of Hawkmoth’s domain with saws in hand, hacking at the stem where the bloom came from. Others inched closer to her, ready for the attack. Suppressing a scream -because even as level-headed and intelligent as she was those creatures were scary - Nathalie tossed the petal back at them, fumbling her apologies and excuses into one incoherent mess before flitting out as fast as her wings could carry her.

MLB

Watching her departure two creatures different from the ones Nathalie had encountered jumped onto a fallen log. One was black with vibrant green eyes, black fur, and feline features. The other was similar in a way, but its ears were longer, its coloring taking in oranges and whites as well as black, and its eyes a mischievous purple. The black one spoke, looking at the petal which had fallen to the forest floor.

“Was she trying to get a primrose petal?” he asked.

“Doubtful,” the orange one answered, “And even if she had, only the Rosa Peace fairy could use them properly. And where is she?”

“Down in the dungeons, I know,” the black one grumbled.

“Still,” the orange one remarked, “We better tell him.” and like that she scampered away.

The black one followed, calling out, “He’s not gonna be happy!”

“Let me handle it,” the orange one parried, “I’ll tell him.”

“Okay,” the black one agreed.

They scampered deeper and deeper into the forest, eventually stopping at a hollowed and rotted out old stump which served as the castle for the kingdom. Leaping over spiders and other insects that littered the grounds. The throneroom, despite its rather unnecessary skylight, was shrouded in shadow. Deep within these shadows sat their monarch.

“Sire,” the orange one panted, “News from the borders,” nudging the black one it added, “You can tell him.”

The black one looked and felt as though it had been thrown under the bus but said, “Okay…” addressing the monarch he continued, “A fairy flew into our forest,”

“What?” came the irritated growl from the Forest’s king. The black one hesitated but continued anyways,

“And almost took a primrose.”

Rising Hawkmoth grabbed hold of his staff, “A primrose!” the way he was holding it made it seem like he was going to physically take his anger out on his underlings, but instead he merely thumped it on the ground- though with enough force to frighten them. With resigned sulleness he sighed, “I hate this time of year, spring…” the season for lovers was left unsaid, “Send more Goblins to cut down every last primrose,” Hawkmoth ordered as he stalked towards them, casting an even darker shadow in the gloom. His mayfly wings twitched irritably, as did segments of his exoskeleton as it cracked, “No primroses, no potion. No potion, no love ,” he spat the final word out as though it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Though no one had asked him why, he felt the need to explain why love was such a bad thing, “Love is dangerous. It weakens, it rots! It destroys order and without order what is left?” the panelings on his shoulders flexed out and shivered as if instinctively, “Chaos!” the last word was a horrified whisper. Though the effect proved more fear inspiring in the cat and fox like minions who shrank back from him.

Hawkmoth loomed closer to them, bringing his face out of the shadows just long enough to reveal flashing eyes, “Destroy the primroses! Or I will destroy you!”

With hasty promises to do as they had been bidden they bowed and scurried away. However, the cat was faster than the fox and managed not to be caught as they veered through the castle’s corridors.

“Trixx!” another voice called out, stopping the fox in her path. She looked to see Duusu, the dowager queen and Hawkmoth’s nursemaid turned stepmother with a huge smile on her face which could only mean the woman was plotting something. Sure enough, “I need your help.”

“Nope,” Trixx immediately responded, trying to move forward only for Duusu to raise a leg and block the path more thoroughly as it drapped out of the panels of her blue feather dress. Duusu acted as if she hadn’t heard the other female deny assistance and carried on.

“You know how your boss, my son is making everyone miserable with his ban on love?” she asked.

“No,” Trixx replied, because it was easier just to follow orders as they were given than reverse the opinion of the stubborn monarch.

“Don’t you want to see love return to the Dark Forest?” Duusu asked, hugging herself with delight as she imagined it.

“No,” Trixx deadpanned. What she wanted at the moment was to get out of this situation and carry out her orders before she was yelled at and punished. Hawkmoth’s punishments were never fun to endure for anyone involved. But they did it because better for one to suffer than all.

“Well,” Duusu still didn’t seem to be getting the point, “I found him the perfect-” her attention was distracted as someone poked their head out in curiosity and she snapped, “I told you to stay out of the light!”

Ah, here it went again. Another misguided attempt to reverse the ban on love by setting her son up. Yeah, Trixx wanted absolutely no part in that, thank you ma’am. Taking the opportunity which had presented itself Trixx scampered around Duusu and hurried out the door. The dowager herself shook her head and sighed.

MLB

In the meantime Nathalie had beaten a hasty retreat back to the familiar layout of the Fairy Fields. As she caught her breath she saw the comforting sight of her fiance.

“Sebastian!” she cried. Thank goodness, her knight in literally shining armor was there.

Sebastian was riding atop an armored rabbit that hopped about with bounding strides. One of their favorite things to do was go for rides on Hopper (the rabbit’s name) and enjoy the feeling of freefall flight. At the call of his name the knight saw the tell-tale purple wings of his intended. He stopped his steed and called back up to her.

“Aren’t you supposed to be getting ready for our wedding?”

Nathalie looked down at herself. She was already in the white dress, gloves, and shoes. She wasn’t exactly certain how much more ready she could actually get. Still, she answered, “I was, I am.” she amended. Remembering the present she had poured her heart into crafting she called as she started to descend, “Oh wait! I have something for you!”

“Aren’t you the sweetest little-” whatever word he’d been about to finish that sentence with was lost as Nathalie crash landed into the brush of a rose bush. “Nathalie, sweetie, you’re,” he put a metal finger in his mouth, unsure if he should continue but decided to anyways, “You’re in a bush.”

“I know,” Nathalie called out, trying to keep the brambles from picking at her or tearing a hole in her clothes.

“Mind telling me why?”

“I nearly forgot, you can’t look at me!”

Sebastian smirked, “And why is that?”

“It’s bad luck to see the bride before the ceremony. I don’t want to jinx our wedding day.”

“What a pity,” Sebastian mourned the loss, “Since I think this has been one of my best looking days yet,” he was picking up a piece of bracken that had fallen from Nathalie’s hair as she’d dived into a rosebush and examined it. Its color and visible texture matched nothing from the Fields. Which meant… Sebastian instantly threw the stick away and turned on her, “Were you in the Dark Forest?” he accused her.

“No,” Nathalie lied, “Well… maybe… okay yes.” she admitted. Immediately Sebastian marched into the bush, causing Nathalie to duck behind a branch.

“You could have been killed!” Sebastian chided her, “Or worse, injured and permanently crippled!”

“I can take care of myself!” Nathalie protested as she flew higher and higher.

“That kingdom is no place for a princess!” Sebastian called as he followed her.

“Oh really?” Nathalie snuck up behind him and stole his sword from the scabbard that hung at his side and flew up, struggling to keep her equilibrium and utterly unprepared for the weight of the weapon, “How about a princess who can defend herself?” experimentally she swung the sword, the momentum carrying her off to a tipping point.

Sebastian watched this with mild amusement, akin to a parent watching their kid acting ridiculous and stupid but knowing they needed to be supportive anyways, “Yep, you’re my big strong girl who’s got herself a sword, yep,” he caught the sword by the hilt with no effort as she dropped it on him. “You done?”

A little flustered from embarrassment Nathalie flew up to a higher branch hoping it would obscure her from his gaze, “Okay fine, so I’m not the best swordsman. But that’s okay, because when I rule this kingdom I won’t need a sword to fight my battles. We’ll do things diplomatically. I will march right up to Hawkmoth and talk to him so that we can make peace and allow everyone to come and go as they please! Think of all the adventures waiting for us in there!”

Ever since she had been small Nathalie had been entranced by her father’s stories of diplomatic trips to the Dark Forest for negotiations, first with Hawkmoth’s father and finally with the new king himself. It sounded amazing, as equally entrancing as it was terrifying. And if they could come to an accord, Nathalie knew she wouldn’t mind going back there.

In the midst of her preoccupation with all the changes she would make when the crown sat on her head Sebastian had snuck up and reached out to her, a suave line on his lips.

“I’ll be your adventure,” he promised, “My future queen,” he took her hand and bestowed a swift kiss on it.

Nathalie swooned, it was the textbook definition of romantic, “My future king,”

“Ah, king,” Sebastian smiled as he pulled out his sword and practiced with it, “An army fully ready at my disposal to deploy…”

Nathalie perked up. As the most trusted knight in the guard Sebastian had a great deal of power and sway as it was. Why that was the thing he was focusing on confused her, “Don’t you already do that though?” she asked him.

Sebastian laughed, “My naive little Nathalie, unfortunately if I perceive a threat to the kingdom I can’t instantly mobilize. It needs to go through all the proper channels, you know politics. The king has to approve a military mobilization or else it’s no good. As king though, I make the final decision, and that takes a lot of the work out. I know you love peace, and would rather not see anyone hurt, but sometimes to protect what you care about there’s just no other option. You understand don’t you darling?”

Nathalie was quiet a moment. Marinette had come to them, they had later found out, after her family had been attacked by raiders. A servant had dropped the infant at the royal doorstep before fleeing for safety with the bandits hot on their trail. Marinette had been hurt, but Nathalie had always been of the mind that violence would only incite more violence. And yet, Sebastian had a point.

“Yeah,” she finally agreed, albeit very hesitantly, “I understand.”

“I knew you would. Now,” Sebastian let go and headed out of the bush, “Go and finish getting yourself all dolled up. Today has got to be absolutely perfect.”

He mounted his steed and issued the order. They were off and moving while Nathalie watched them go as she flew out the top. A dreamy sigh escaped her. This had by no means been the man she’d expected to end up with, but she was glad this was the way things were going to be.

“Nathalie!” came a concerned voice. The crown princess turned to see her younger sibling and her three sprite attendants Tikki, Pollen, and Nooroo. They looked as though they had been searching for her all day.

“Don’t you remember the wedding’s today?” Marinette huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as her vivid red and black wings beat at the air, “You need to get ready!”

“I know, I know,” Nathalie responded to each of her sister’s chidings.

“What’s with your hair?” Marinette asked as she pulled twigs out of it and tried to smooth the slightly too long locks back into some semblance of order, “We don’t have much time!” then she saw the object in Nathalie’s hand and made a disgusted noise, “What is that ?”

“It’s a boutonniere.” Nathalie explained, then her face fell at the remembrance, “I forgot to give it to Sebastian!” she lamented.

“You can’t give him that!” Marinette argued.

“Why not?” Nathalie posed, arching a brow. She thought her work was nice for the attempt. And it was the thought that counted.

“He’s too good looking,” Marinette stated the obvious, “And you know you’re not the best with… feminine affairs.”

“I’m not good with a needle and thread, I get it,” Nathalie huffed, but then she thought about Sebastian and swooned again, “You’re right,” she said as her wings fanned out to catch her fall.

“I’ll just fix that then,” Marinette plucked the gift out of her sibling’s hand, to a distracted thank you from the elder. Marinette smiled and shook her head handing it off to the sprites for damage control.

“Marinette,” Nathalie suddenly sounded unsure of herself, causing the younger girl to look at her. Despite the age gap between the two they were extremely close, and Marinette knew for a fact Nathalie was not the best in social situations that did not have an end goal involved with bettering the kingdom. Hence why she’d ended up betrothed instead of picking her own partner.

“What is it?”

“Do you think,” Nathalie bit her lip before continuing, “Do you think that Sebastian loves me… as much as I love him?” her eyes were wide and worried and pleading. And Marinette could tell this was more than the first time that question had crossed Nathalie’s mind.

“Nath,” Marinette smiled, “How could he not love you? I mean you’re so…” it was hard to find words that would accurately describe Nathalie without being easy to twist into an insult, “So… lovable!”

“You really think so?”

Marinette’s smile grew wider, “If you could see the way I see you now, you wouldn’t be asking that question.”

They flew back to the palace and Marinette made adjustments to Nathalie’s gown the whole way. Nathalie could understand what Marinette was fussing. The younger princess had always had an affinity for fashion and had been making her own creations for some time now. In fact, Nathalie had asked Marinette to personally made the dress for this day, and Marinette took her work very seriously. She’d slaved over the design and stitching for months and the final result -while now a bit stained from Nathalie’s excursions- was simply stunning.

The sprites finished their work with the boutonniere and brought it back. It now looked a lot better than it had, and a lot better than Nathalie could have ever made it look. Nathalie gasped, “It’s perfect!”

“You’re welcome,” Marinette brushed it off and turned to walk away.

“I want to give this to him right now!” Nathalie proclaimed, flying off and singing her heart out even as Marinette called after her, reminding her sibling of the back luck she could incur. Nathalie didn’t listen.

“Uh oh,” Marinette put her hands to her face, every bit of her expression worried. The sprites mirrored the action.

All over the fields Nathalie tracked him down, excitement growing and heart pounding. She could hardly wait! She wanted to see his face, the expression he would have as she presented it to him. She could imagine his charming smile, the romantic line of thanks that would come out of his mouth. Perhaps they could even sneak in a kiss or two before the ceremony?

Sebastian was going further and further into the fields, but away from any place of normal civilization. The place where the grass blades grew tall and thick, the perfume from the flowers a bit too cloying from there many so many of them in such a small area. Nathalie tracked him there, landing on a rock that Hopper had not even two minutes previous leaped off of. She was opening her mouth, ready to call out to him. But someone else beat her to the punch. It was said just as ecstatically as Nathalie herself would have said it, but it belonged to a younger woman. She leapt into Sebastian’s arms and he swung her around like a giddy youth, drunk on love. The girl cupped his face in their hands and they shared a tender kiss. Nathalie’s heart shattered. She wanted to cry out, but instead clapped a hand over her mouth. Instantly her brain went into overdrive, trying to rationalize and justify. Maybe it was just a female relative, that could very well be the case. But why would they need to come all the way out here to meet? And surely everyone in the kingdom would know her for his cousin. The only reason that could possibly be logical without being world-crumbling was quickly losing ground to stand on, and then the girl made it all the worse.

“You’re sure you need to go through with this?” she asked, pouting at him. Nathalie kept silent watch from over the edge of the rock.

“If I want to be King then it’s a necessary evil darlin’,” he soothed, “Now how many times have I told you that?”

“You promise me that it’s all for show?”

“Well,” he drawled, “There will need to be heirs. I can’t avoid that, but know it’s you I’ll be thinking of the whole time. I promise.”

“And you’ll set me up in the palace as soon as possible?”

“Of course my love,” his words were like honey to her, but vinegar to Nathalie, “I promise.”

The woman sighed, “Oh Sebastian.”

And there was no escaping the one fact. Her betrothed had lied, cheated, and swindled her. All that change wasn’t true change, it was careful manipulation. So long as she played the part of blushing bride, overjoyed the kingdom would never pay attention to where he would slip out. She’d been played for a fool. The boutonniere was crushed under the weight of her fist and her heartbreak. Nathalie managed a stilted, stumbling running start and leapt into the air. She didn’t look back to see if the couple had noticed her, in fact she hoped they did. She hoped they feared what she might say. But for now, she had a wedding to cancel.

MLB

Despite knowing she had made the right choice, despite being thankful at finding out the truth before she had said I do, Nathalie locked herself into her room the moment she returned home. She lay on her bed, a fully bloomed rose and remembered that roses had their thorns. Sebastian had hidden things from her, and while the piercing hurt more than anything, they were thorns that could still be removed. But for now, she mourned the future she had lost, all her hopes and dreams. All that progress for nothing.

And the pain, the blinding, searing, unbearable pain. Part of it was rejection, part of it was ego, part of it was chiding her on how foolish she had been. The entire kingdom had proclaimed her frigid and unapproachable, she should have stayed that way. At least those with hearts of ice never got hurt by anyone. Because no one could get close enough to hurt them. There was a knock at her door.

“Nathalie?” Marinette asked as she opened the door and came in, “Nathalie?”

“Marinette,” Nathalie sniffed, rising and sliding off her bed, seeking comfort from her sibling.

“What’s wrong?” Marinette asked, “What happened?”

Nathalie opened her mouth to speak. The words burned at the back of her throat. She wanted to tell Marinette everything, all the dates and conversations and memories meant nothing. It had all been part of a plot for the crown. He had someone else, someone younger, someone prettier, someone he seemed to love. Or did he? Nathalie now wondered if all those words for that girl had been like all his words for her, nothing but words. And speaking of words, they wouldn’t come. Nathalie couldn’t find the strength to break the dam that kept her from confiding. The pain choked her, rendered her unable to speak. She couldn’t breathe, and yet from all outward signs she was just another emotional bride.

“I-” Nathalie managed to choke out, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Not even with me?” Marinette had every right to sound as concerned and a little upset as she did. Nathalie and her confided with each other about everything. The sisters had secrets which had yet to see the light of day, and never would.

“I can’t,” Nathalie shook her head helplessly, tears glistening anew in her eyes, “I’m sorry, it’s…”

“It’s what?”

Nathalie shook her head again, “Tell father,” she took a deep breath, “The wedding’s off.”

She took the door and shut it softly but firmly in her sibling’s face, ignoring Marinette’s shocked repetition of Nathalie’s words. She slumped as she walked, defeat exuding from every last bit of her. She felt defeated, he had won. Even though he had lost he had won. Nathalie was broken from this. She should have known, she should have suspected. Hindsight could do nothing now though. Not wanting to return to her bed Nathalie sat at her vanity. She recalled all the days Marinette had practiced hairstyles on her, trying to find the perfect look to go with the dress she had created. Nathalie remembered the first finished product, trying it on and spinning with glee. She remembered dancing with herself in the mirror, pretending it would be the first dance she shared with her new husband. She felt like a marionette which had had its strings cut. Sure, she was free, but she felt like she couldn’t move. No better than a doll.

A doll, that was what Sebastian had called her. Always telling her to go get dolled up. Never accepting what she first presented. That should have been the biggest clue of all. Never being taken seriously, his big girl with the sword. Well, no longer. Nathalie thoughtfully regarded a pair of scissors Marinette had forgotten on the vanity’s tabletop. That delicate little doll was gone, forever broken by the careless hands of a heartless man. And from her ashes would rise a fighter.

Chapter Text

The wedding dress, the one that Marinette had worked so hard on was left intact, though the only thing Nathalie wanted to do with it was take the scissors and cut it to shreds. But that would hurt Marinette more than it would make her feel better. The gown was shoved to the back of her closet instead. Nathalie remained near invisible those first couple of weeks, the only signs of her still being alive being the empty plates left outside her room and things spontaneously going missing. The sprites were the only ones Nathalie allowed around her, because they wouldn’t try to get her to talk. They aided with her transformation.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Tikki asked, holding a leave shred almost as large as her own body in her hands. A jar of red dye was sitting on the vanity with a broad flat brush dipped in its hue, “I mean, the cut looks fine as it is.”

The cut, as Tikki was referring to it, had been what Nathalie had done with the sewing scissors Marinette had forgotten in her sister’s room. The shoulder length hair had been something that always bothered Nathalie a bit, considering that it was too easy to get in her face or tangle in her wings if it got too long. But Sebastian had always liked it. And now Nathalie wanted nothing more than to make herself anew. Gone was the naive and foolish child, in her place would rise a woman of stone. The locks had been discarded in favor of short, almost choppy layers that stuck out almost messily around her head. Pollen, being the most familiar with floof and knowing how best to style it had guided her hand so Nathalie didn’t ruin the composition with her own inexperience. The only long hair Nathalie had kept was her bangs, and that had only been because she’d had plans for them.

“Do it,” Nathalie replied. Tikki tucked the leaf scrap under Nathalie’s bangs, then grabbed the brush and started painting at the locks. From root to tip she performed long even strokes, trying to get the color as seamless as possible. When she was done Tikki folded up the leaf, the dye causing it to stick to itself.

“Nooroo,” Nathalie called, the purple sprite flew over.

“Yes?” he asked.

“What types of clothes did you find?”

“Not much,” Nooroo lamented, “Not in the vein of what you wanted anyways. We’ll have to get the clothes and dye them.

“Very well, what plants make the colors I want?”

As Nooroo listed off the types of plants and colors they produced and what she would need to mix together to get what she wanted, Pollen and Tikki were examining what Nooroo had managed to find clothing wise for Nathalie to wear. Most of them, in accordance with space for her wings, had a racer’s back to them, this back strap which ran between her shoulder blades was detachable with a tiny button hidden by the way the pieces connected. Coupled with these tops were pairs of form fitting breeches, usually in black or white. It had been rather difficult to find a place that would make them, even for the crown princess.

Nathalie cut Nooroo off, “Find the plants and have them collected so we can get the dies made, better yet, write a list. I need to get to the royal armsman.”

“Why?” Tikki asked.

“I’m getting measurements for a sword,” Nathalie replied.

“A sword?” the Sprites knew that Nathalie had been undergoing some changes as a way of coping with the heartbreak of her cheating ex-fiance, but this was a bit much.

“I know I’m good at diplomacy, but the one point I can concede to Sebastian was that sometimes there really is no other option than fighting. And how can I call myself a good ruler if I can’t even defend myself?”

MLB

In a little less than a year Nathalie’s transformation was complete. Instead of the traditional royal colors she now favored dark jewel tones. Deep purples and blues and greens and even a hint of pink. Colors that screamed with intensity and potency, so unlike the pastels that decorated the denizens of the fairy kingdom. Nathalie liked the colors that screamed, that proclaimed to the world she was foreboding and dangerous. A wild thing not to be tamed. The same could be said for the transformation of her hair, and the fact that now makeup, something she had traditionally never bothered with, was a primary part of her ensemble. Her warpaint, made from the paste of blueberries and painted over her eyes, making them seem deep and wide and almost sunken. In a way it made her all the more terrifying, and yet alluring. Not that she noticed such frivolous things as romance any longer.

It had taken a lot of time and effort and help from the sprites in order for Nathalie to become proficient in her new past time. The sword she now wielded was better suited to her size and strength. Then again, it had been tailor made for her. She could do anything, fight anyone. Her wings and arm certainly had gotten a workout. There was nothing more strenuous than mid-air combat training. That had been what she focused on, knowing her size was not conducive to in-ground fighting. She would need to rely on her speed of movement in order to keep up with the others, who had a near lifetime of experience as compared to her.

Of course, that wasn’t so important at the moment as finding her sibling was. Marinette, in the last year or so, had gone from simply having a crush to completely boy crazy. Nathalie had been so certain she cared for Adrien, more than as a friend. She was completely certain that the description applied to Adrien. Adrien was a total goofball around her, and she noticed how reserved he was around everyone else. But who was to say? Maybe they were both afraid to ruin their friendship? Or maybe after years of waiting and no one making the first move Marinette had decided to move on. Either way, Marinette started skipping out and disappearing more and more and Nathalie was always the one who had to go track her down.

“Marinette!” she called, flying around the fields, “Marinette where are you?”

MLB

Adrien ducked out from his hiding spot as he saw Nathalie fly away, “The coast is clear!” he called out, trying not to be too loud so that Nathalie would come and investigate.

Marinette rose from behind a wishing flower, carrying the bloom with her and drifting into the air to scatter the seeds. The sunlight bounced off her iridescent wings and she looked so happy. Shining so brightly Adrien was utterly entranced. He watched with a dreamy smile, until some of the fuzz from drifting seeds tickled his nose and he began to sneeze uncontrollably. Instantly Marinette shot down and was shushing him.

“She’ll hear you!” Marinette hissed.

“Sorry,” Adrien said as he tried to stop. Marinette thumped him on the back as he tried to get himself under control. He winced a bit as she accidentally brushed a scarred over nub that apparently wasn’t so scarred over. Adrien rose to his full height, which despite being a good bit taller than most Elves was still a bit shorter than the long, lean statures of the Fairies. He didn’t mind though, he was still close enough to see Marinette’s gorgeous blue eyes.

Marinette sighed as she looked back to the sky, “Whatever happened on that wedding day last year must have been really bad.”

“Yeah,” Adrien agreed, drawing breath like another sneeze was coming. Which it did, just as he added, “Ba-choo!”

“I mean, now she’s always watching, worrying, hovering. I mean, the flail thing?” Marinette gestured to a small circular object decorated like a ladybug attached to a string that was wrapped around her waist. Its purpose was to be swung around and was equally as useful for defense as offense, “What’s she trying to protect me from?”

“It’s odd,” Adrien concurred, “She puts all this effort into training you, she should know by now that you can take care of yourself.”

“Right…” Marinette drawled. Nathalie had decided to train both of them to be capable of handling themselves in a fight, though most of her newly learned techniques went to Adrien, who kept a specially made extendable staff on him at all times.

“Anyways,” she brushed off the topic, “The Spring Ball is tonight!”

“Yeah!”

“The biggest event of the season?”

“Yeah!”

“What’s your plan?”

“I made it so that when the music starts you’ll ‘accidentally’ bump into Nathaniel.”

Marinette grinned excitedly and gave him a big hug, a giddy squeal escaping her as she said, “This is going to be the best day ever!”

Adrien soaked up the embrace before returning it meltingly, “It already is,” he sighed happily.

And just like that it was over as Marinette pulled back and said, “Wait, Nathaniel?”

“Yeah, the artist with the flaming red hair?” Adrien reminded her.

“Oh, I don’t have a crush on him anymore,” Marinette dismissed.

“Why not?”

“I found out he likes Chloe, so there’s no chance,” Marinette explained, “Lately, I’ve had my eye on Luka.”

“Oh boy,” Adrien muttered under his breath as he scratched the back of his head, “I’ve got to find Nathaniel and tell him to stand in a new place, then find Luka and tell him to stand in the old place Nathaniel was standing in-”

“Oh no!” Marinette suddenly started to freak out, “What if he already likes someone else? Or I do something to completely embarrass myself in front of him!”

“Snap out of it!” Adrien took her by the shoulders and gave a gentle shake.

When it didn’t work he started to sing and dance and joke and use his stature and lithe build to do some acrobatics. The same things that had always cheered her up when they were small. Adrien tried to keep her happy, since her happiness was his. Still, even as he did his best to reassure her he couldn’t help the small niggling of jealousy that rose within him. He wanted to say that any guy who didn’t immediately pay attention to her wasn’t worth her time, but that wasn’t the sort of thing a friend would say. And he had made a promise to himself that he -who had no real family aside from Marinette and Nathalie- would always be there when they needed it. His own feelings came second.

Of course, at some point he became so consumed with cheering Marinette up he didn’t hear her calls of warning. Then, an enormous lizard came out of the brush, intent on making meals out of the pair. They ducked and dodged and bobbed and wove, only barely managing to stay out of harm's way. The creature was too big for their weapons to be of any use, though Marinette decided to use her flail as a lasso and her flight momentum to pull Adrien out of the direct path of the lizard.

“Help somebody!” she called as loudly as she could, dodging the snaps of the sharp teeth behind her, “We need help!”

Tiny pebbles hit the lizard in succession. Not enough to do any damage, but enough to distract its attention away. Nathalie flew in with a larger rock she’d obviously had to swoop to pick up.

“You’re looking at it,” she said as she tested the weight and trajectory and then took aim and fired.

What ensued was not the most epic battle there had ever been. It was move of using Adrien as bait while Nathalie and Marinette found a way to injure it enough to make it retreat. Apparently blueberries to the eye was that way. Of course, the lizard had reared back in pain, knocking Adrien off his feet and sending him rolling off into the Dark Forests borders. Not that the Elf noticed this, too busy trying to get his vision to stop tilting and catch his breath. With one hand Nathalie grabbed the collar of his clothes and pulled him out, tossing him further into Fairy domain.

“You were in the Dark Forest!” she yelled at him.

“I was?” “He was?” the two said at the same time.

“Do you want what happened to the Rosa Peace fairy to happen to you?” Nathalie seethed at them. Their exclamations to the contrary went unheard as she continued to further emphasize her point, “Locked away forever! And why? Because she made love potions using…” her words trailed off as a petal from the traitorous bloom fell in front of her. A year had passed, spring was here again. “Primroses.”

Marinette and Adrien were talking, but Nathalie couldn’t hear them. All she could see were the flashbacks of that day. The Goblins and other creatures coming for her, bloodlust in their eyes. Her own palpable fear. Her vulnerability. She wanted to collapse. No, she was stronger than that. And it wasn’t as if she would have to face her fear any time soon.

“Lie? Nathalie!” Marinette’s voice pulled her out of the cloud of the past.

“We need to get out of here, now!” Nathalie said decisively.

“I just said that,” Adrien pointed out. Nathalie toss the primrose petal she’s grabbed hold of in the midst of her remembering and tossed it at Marinette, who shirked away as if it was something dangerous or gross. It landed on Adrien who freaked out before hiding it under an aboveground root and running off.

MLB

Marinette was humming and twirling in the air as she and Nathalie flew back to the castle in preparation for the dance that was coming later tonight. Nathalie was looking at her sibling, utterly unimpressed.

“Really? She asked aloud, “That’s how you're choosing to react to a near-death experience?”

“You make such a big deal out of everything!” Marinette huffed.

“A big deal?” Nathalie stopped mid-air and folded her arms, “You and Adrien were nearly killed because the two of you don’t know how to keep your heads out of the clouds, or in your case, off of the boys.”

“I just can’t help it,” Marinette dismissed her behavior, “I just want to find the perfect boy.”

Nathalie had to physically bite back the retort of the perfect boy for her being right under her nose. “I don’t care about that,” she said instead, “The problem is that you just have no idea what’s going on around you! I can’t always be there to save the day when you get in trouble, and while Adrien is competent he can’t help you if something happens in the air. He doesn’t have wings!”

“Adrien and I can handle ourselves,” Marinette argued, “And I’d thank you to remember that you trained us to be able to fight, yet when bad things happen you’re the one that intervenes!”

“Because you’re too young and inexperienced!” Nathalie felt her temper rising, the one emotion that she had not lost touch with in the past year was rage and anger. It served her well, kept her from forgetting, and from forgiving the unforgivable.

“And you-” Marinette caught sight of her appearance in the stream (which to them was more like a river) below, “Oh my goodness I’m a total mess!”

“You’re choosing to worry about that now?”

“Of course! I want to look my best,” Marinette tugged on Nathalie’s arm, “Come on, we have to get ready for the Spring Ball!”

Nathalie let out a breath of laughter, “Ah, no. You have to get ready for the Spring Ball.”

Marinette eyed her sister with a look of disbelief and slight disapproval, “You’re going like that?” she asked. At Nathalie’s nod she added, “Good luck being asked to dance.”

“I’m not dancing,” Nathalie replied, “As a matter of fact I’m only going because Dad asked me to. Otherwise I would skip the whole thing entirely.”

Marinette huffed, “Did whatever happened last year take away your ability to have a good time too?”

Nathalie froze, “Parties are a little less enjoyable when all anyone can do is speculate why you ended your engagement on the day of the wedding,” she said harshly.

Marinette sensed the danger in pressing the issue and held her hands up placatingly, “Alright, alright. Still a sore subject, I’m sorry. It’s alright, I’ll have enough fun for the both of us.”

“Your feet are going to be sore,” Nathalie pointed out.

“When you dance with the perfect boy you feel like you’re dancing on air,” Marinette parried.

“So your feet are going to be really sore,” Nathalie ribbed.

The sisters laughed as they flew back to the castle.

MLB

The Spring Ball was a traditional event in the Fairy Kingdom. And in the years before last Nathalie had always looked forward to it. She was always awkward, but it was a good chance to have some fun away from sneaking out under her father’s watch, which as the eldest and heir apparent Nathalie couldn’t do nearly as much as Marinette could. And yet, this year as she strode in on her father’s arm Nathalie wanted nothing more than to spread her wings, fly off, and hack at something with her sword until her muscles screamed or they gave out. After having her heart broken this whole thing felt so fake.

The Fairy King noticed this and whispered to her, “Smile my dear, smile.”

Nathalie tried to oblige, but ended up looking more like a cornered creature baring its teeth.

“A real smile,” the king nudged.

“This is one of my better ones,” Nathalie parried.

“I just don’t understand,” her father shook his head, “You used to love the Spring Ball.”

“Dad, I’m just too old for this sort of thing,” and it was true. Amongst the Fairies she was considered a spinster. And since she’d never expressed interest in anyone, a betrothal had seemed the most logical option. Until it hadn’t been, and then Nathalie refused to try again.

The Fairy King sighed, “Well, I hope you’re not too old to share a dance with your father,”

Nathalie smiled for real and was about to respond when a voice called out, “Or someone even better.”

That voice. It couldn’t be. But sure enough when Nathalie looked over there he was. With that smarmy charming grin and his armor shined to perfection. And that confident glint in his eye. The one that said though she hadn’t yet given in this would be the time she surely would.

Sebastian began to sing, something she’d adored when she’d still been blind to the truth. But now he was making a production of a public apology. A way to force her hand, to make her forgive him because of societal expectations. If he made such an effort before so many witnesses she would be the one in the wrong for refusing him; which she had every intention of doing.

She decided to remind him of what exactly he had done wrong, “You cheated on me, remember?” she hissed at him.

“You left me at the altar,” he said as though it was an equivalent exchange of agony, “remember?” when she looked unmoved he mimed a sword -symbolic of her indifference- plunging into his heart.

Of course, that was more for the crowd than for her. He was charming everyone, even her father, even the sprites. They all believed him, because they couldn’t see past the surface. The song continued, and now Nathalie could see he’d managed to rope in others, swaying them with his charm and words into helping him win her back. They all gathered around the ballroom’s fountain, forming a huge flower that was supposed to be a token of peace. One that she would be expected to accept, even after taking to the air to escape the kiss he’d attempted to force on her. And still, he persisted to think he had claim on her, calling her his.

“I’m not your anything!” Nathalie shouted at him, somehow still remaining relatively impassive despite the rage she felt boiling under her skin, heating her blood and making her sword hand twitch for the hilt of the weapon.

“One little mistake,” Sebastian chided her. As though he truly thought his actions nothing more than a trivial matter. Despite how utterly it had torn her apart.

“Little?” Nathalie repeated numbly. Her ire was unleashed, “Little!” she descended towards him with an accusatory finger pointed, “You, you have a lot of nerve walking in her and saying it was one little mistake!”

And then she began to sing. Full of anger, full of righteous fury. This was not Fairy song, this was something far darker and more primal, being drudged up from the very depths of her soul. Sebastian would pay, and a public slamming, ridicule, humiliation would be the lightest pound of flesh she would extract before she was through.

It was fun, so incredibly satisfying to see him tremble with fear even as he tried to continue to win her back. Skittering like the lowest form of life, a coward with no spine. Further and further she dove him back until he was literally against the wall. With a final declaration of how she wanted nothing to do, loud and in his face so it would get through his incredibly thick and self-absorbed skull, she pulled the doors until he fell through them and then immediately slammed them shut. A final petty wave had her looking back at the crowd, who watched her as though they had no idea who this creature was.

Too satisfied to care Nathalie said, “Now that was fun.”

The awkward silence ensued. Made only more awkward with Marinette’s declaration of it being awkward as she looked away. With a sigh of frustration Nathalie threw up her hands and stalked away, uncaring of the party she was leaving behind.

Chapter Text

Utterly humiliated but too boneheaded to give up Sebastian was in the process of pulling his wings out of the door when his lackeys slammed it open on him. They were laughing and ribbing their boss about how good the crown princess had gotten him.

“So much for being king,” one of them remarked. And that was the part that stung.

Sebastian slammed the door shut and got their attention, “Are you saying I can’t be king?” his look was dangerous and for their own self-preservation the trio saluted to “King Sebastian!”

It placed him, until one of the lackeys remembered the logistics of becoming king, “But wouldn’t he have to marry Nathalie?” they questioned.

“He will,” another hushed him, “All we need to do is get some of that love potion,”

Sebastian slammed his fist against the closed door, “Are you saying I need a love potion?”

They’d been about to argue that every attempt to win Nathalie over since she’d broken it off had failed and that his self-touted skills with women were failing to rise to the occasion. So yes, if he really wanted this he would need to resort to underhanded tactics like that. But the glare being aimed at them told them it was in their best interest to play it off as a joke and then quickly disappear. Which they did.

Sebastian calmed himself and tried to focus. He went so far as to instruct out loud what would help him think. Visualize, visualize. The crown, with its precious metals and glimmering jewels. Visualize it sitting right on top of his-

The thought was interrupted as someone else exited out the door, smacking it into him and sending him to the ground. Sebastian looked to see Adrien peering through a crack in the door. His gaze was riveted to Marinette as she danced with everyone she could get her hands on. Adrien, a mere oddball Elf, had a crush on Marinette. And Marinette didn’t seem to reciprocate or even know about those feelings. Interesting, and useful. Sebastian tapped on Adrien’s shoulder asking if the latter was okay.

Instantly Adrien slammed the door and became incredibly awkward trying to play it cool, “Yes! I am!” Sebastian merely stared at him until he cracked, “No… No. I’m not.”

“Hey there,” Sebastian realized he didn’t actually know the Elf’s name even though he could always be seen at Marinette’s side, “ Elf, I know exactly how you feel,”

“Yeah, Nath slammed you pretty good didn’t she?” Adrien asked, noting how not upset Sebastian appeared to be.

Sebastian was angered by that, but there was an opening he was looking for. He knew that the one thing out of his abilities was convincingly fake crying. But faking masculine attempts not to cry? That was right up her alley.

“Yeah,” he said, tone choked as he slumped into a sitting position on the stairs, running a finger through his hair and disheveling it even as it pained him to do so, “She really did, didn’t she?” he quickened his breathing to match that of someone who cried, sniffling and snivelling, “I mean, she’s just incredible isn’t she?”

Adrien awkwardly patted Sebastian’s back. Even during his betrothal to Nathalie they had never really interacted, as a matter of fact Adrien had often wondered if Sebastian had even noticed his existence. Adrien sighed, “You got it bad, don’t you?”

“I just wish,” Sebastian paused as though there was a knot in his throat, “that there was… a, a way to make her fall in love with me.”

Adrien thought of Marinette and said, “Me too…”

“I’ve tried everything!” Sebastian lamented, “Flowers, chocolates, perfumes, a big romantic gesture nothing works. Maybe you can help me think of something. What else could I do?”

“I uh-” Adrien didn’t know what to say. He was still caught up in thinking of a way to confess to Marinette, and being terrified of her rejection and the end of their friendship. Because it would get weird. It always got weird.

“I don’t know, maybe something like a love potion…” Sebastian slipped the idea in while he knew Adrien was vulnerable enough to latch onto it.

“Like a love potion,” Adrien murmured, “Yeah, like a love potion!”

“Great idea!” Sebastian thumped Adrien on the back hard enough to send him scooting down a few steps.

“It is,” Adrien allowed, “There’s just one problem; only the Rosa Peace Fairy can make the love potion, she’s locked away in the Dark Forest, and no one ever goes into the Dark Forest!”

“But I know you can,” Sebastian encouraged.

“And why can’t you?” Adrien pressed.

“I took an oath as a knight,” Sebastian sighed mournfully, “To always be at the ready and to be completely honest no Fairy is made for the Dark Forest. Not to mention, I’m sure that even they have heard about my little… falling out with Nathalie. If only I was unimportant, like you,”

“Uhuh,” Adrien cast his gaze to the ground, Sebastian’s words cutting to the quick of his insecurities in a way no one else’s had before. Adrien had spent his days at the palace from his fifth birthday on, because Marinette had found him and declared him her new best friend. His grandparents -who had always resented the fact that he had lived and his mother had not- were more than happy to see him go. He still visited from time to time, to no progress whatsoever.

“And I could blend in, like you,” Sebastian added.

“I-” Adrien thought of how true that was. His grandparents had been happy to forget he existed, his only friend was now looking at every boy except him with stars in her eyes, the Fairy King tolerated him but clearly didn’t like spending time with him, and Nathalie- Nathalie had her own problems to sort through. She rarely noticed anyone anymore, “I do blend in.” Adrien said sadly as he sat back down on the steps.

“Well wouldn’t it have been perfect?” Sebastian proclaimed with extreme melodrama as he sat down beside the blonde Elf boy, “Then we both, I mean you and me, both use the love potion.”

Adrien made a decision then and there, “I’ll do it!” he exclaimed.

“You will?” Sebastian clarified as if he couldn’t believe his luck.

“So long as you promise to split it with me.”

“You have my word,” Sebastian agreed.

MLB

The next day Adrien slipped through the fields with practiced ease. He was so excited. The plan was perfect. Get into the Dark Forest, find the Rosa Peace Fairy, and get her to make the love potion with all the primrose petals he would bring, then return in time for the Elf Spring Dance where he would perform a song for Marinette and then use it on her. His conscious niggled a bit at that last part, but Adrien was too done with being eaten up by the jealousy of watching Marinette flirt with other men to care. Of course, a wrench was thrown into the plan when he got to the border to discover the empty, decapitated stalks of the primrose flowers. Those Goblins really worked fast.

Adrien began to panic. The whole plan was contingent on taking at least one primrose petal to the Rosa Peace Fairy. No petal, no potion, no love. It was that simple. And then Adrien remembered. In the middle of his freakout from yesterday he’d stashed a petal under a root. Hopefully it would still be there. He sighed with relief when he saw it was. To avoid suspicion he stashed it in his pack and then ducked into the thicket of the neighboring kingdom.

Something odd happened. Once he got over his initial fear that something was going to eat him right up he felt, at peace. And the further he went into the forest the easier it became for him to navigate. His stature and physique had meant leant well to acrobatics, something he had made his trade from that day on. And yet this seemed less an act of muscle memory acrobatics and more… primal instinct. The further in he drew the more the instinct took over, until it felt like Adrien belonged here. There was this feral side to him that insisted upon the challenge, to the point where Adrien was convinced he was going the wrong way, purposefully on a subconscious level to relish in the harshness of the terrain. He grinned, his abnormally sharp canines glinting in the sparse sunlight. A large spider crossed his path and Adrien was off, prowling, tracking, determined to hunt it down and enjoy the spoils of freshly killed prey. And then he stopped.

What was he doing ? Adrien wasn’t some savage of the Dark Forest’s domain. He was an Elf. A taller than average Elf, but an Elf nonetheless. He had a job to do. Except, in the midst of instincts taking over Adrien now had no idea where he was going. Dejected he sat down and huffed.

“Great, just great.”

And as if things were only just getting started a threatening shadow loomed over him. Startled but curious Adrien looked to see that it was some white fuzzy thing. Wait, wait, he recognized the creature. It was an Imp. One belonging to neither the Fairy Fields nor the Dark Forest, it came and went as it pleased. They were known to be mischievous, which explained the shadow scare.

“Very funny,” Adrien muttered to it. Instantly the Imp tackled him and pulled the petal out of his pack waving it around as a sign of victory and taunting.

“Give that back!” Adrien shouted, “I’m on a very serious mission!” he added as he finally reclaimed the petal while the Imp disappeared, “I need to find the Rosa Peace Fairy so she can made the all-powerful love potion and I need to do it before someone figures out I’m here.”

At once an acorn was lobbed at him. Adrien looked to the Imp, who beckoned him to join it up on the tree branch it had scampered to. Adrien was hopeful but wary, “You know where she is?”

The Imp nodded and motioned to follow. Adrien free-scaled to the branch and followed close behind.

MLB

Unbeknownst to Adrien, the news that an Elf was in the forest was already spreading. King Hawkmoth and his predecessors employed sentient mushrooms all over the forest floor to keep track of things and report back. The news would travel down the line and end right by the castle. Trixx was on news duty and received the word. Instantly she scampered in and repeated it to Plagg.

“What does it mean?” he asked as Trixx shrugged.

“I’m listening,” Hawkmoth said as he waited for the news.

Trixx cleared her throat, “News from the Mushrooms sire,” to Plagg she added, “You can tell him.”

“What?” Plagg replied.

“He likes you better!” Trixx hissed.

“Now I’m waiting!” Hawkmoth snarled. Plagg looked helplessly at Trixx who nodded in their monarch’s direction.

Plagg cleared his throat, “A small shelf is into clock storage!” he declared.

Hawkmoth tilted his head, “What?”

Instantly Plagg scrambled for an explanation, “I mean, you know how we sometimes have a clock but no place to store it? Apparently there’s a tiny shelf with that very same problem…” Plagg trailed off as it sounded absurd even to his own ears, “That doesn’t make any sense!”

Hawkmoth growled with irritation. Picking up his staff and taking off he yelled, “I’ll deal with it!”

Instantly Trixx stepped out of harm’s way, nudging Plagg to do the same, “Ahem,” she said.

“What?” Plagg asked before looking up and immediately ducking, only barely missing the smack that was sure to come with their king’s trajectory.

Trixx sighed, “That was close.”

“You’re telling me,” Plagg grumbled.

Outside Hawkmoth took out his annoyance on the mushrooms closest to the castle; whacking them with his staff and uprooting them. He did this to several before finally uprooting one and getting the truth of the matter.

“A tall Elf is in the Dark Forest!” he shouted at his subordinates. He dropped the mushroom and then tipped it into the empty moat that surrounded the castle, “Well, if he’s looking for trouble, then he’s come to the right place.”

His whole bring cracked and rattled with authority as his voice raised. Goblins didn’t use singing to express their emotions, they used them to rally and spread a message. A song was a war cry, and those who heard were called to respond. Their monarch’s orders were clear, find the Elf and destroy him by any means necessary.

MLB

Meanwhile Nathalie was practicing with her sword, trying to see if she could fight blind. It was going better than she had expected, and being able to hit them with the flat of her sword while relying on nothing more than her hearing was a good skill to have. Of course if this had been a real battle it wouldn’t be the flat of her sword she was swinging with, but regardless it was fine for now. Of course, it wasn’t so fine when her father was calling to her.

“Nathalie!” he called from his position off a ledge.

“Kind of busy,” she rebutted, blocking another sprite with her flat.

“Nathalie,” he huffed as he struggled to both get into the air and stay airborne. Hearing the audible flapping Nathalie felt with her sword and heard as it clanked against the armor her father always work.

Nathalie sighed, “What is it?” she asked as she removed the blindfold.

“The Elf Spring Dance is going to start soon, I need you to-”

“No,” Nathalie replied firmly, “Not after what happened the last time.”

“But Nathalie,” the King dropped to the ground, unable to hold his position and the conversation at the same time, “Nathalie, you- you’re a,” he was clearly uncomfortable having this conversation, “You’re a unique girl-” which was code for you don’t fit in the societal norms but I still love you and don’t want to insult you. Nathalie rolled her eyes as she returned to training, though she left the blindfold off, “And Sebastian may have a few-”

“Mistresses? Kids?” Nathalie supplied.

“Flaws,” her father corrected.

“Understatement,” Nathalie muttered with a scoff.

“But he still loves you!”

Really, her own father was on his side. It didn’t matter that Nathalie hadn’t told her father the details of what had caused her to drop her ex-fiance, but that shouldn’t have mattered. And it stung more than a little that her father still supported Sebastian’s pursuit of her even after she had made it clear on more than one occasion that she was no longer interested.

“Father,” Nathalie sighed, “I hate to break it to you,” biggest lie of this century, “but Sebastian loves the crown, and women, and not necessarily in that order.”

“But-” the king protested, “If not Sebastian, then surely there’s someone. There has to be someone!”

“No there isn’t and no there doesn’t,” Nathalie replied, rolling her sword over her back and switching hands.

“Maybe if you went out more often, met more people-” he suggested.

“I suggest you let it go dad,” Nathalie brushed it off.

“You’ll be a stronger ruler with a king at your side!” her father argued.

“No father,” Nathalie rebutted, “I was weak before. And marrying Sebastian would have made me a weak ruler. You said it yourself, I’m unique. Too unique. Which means I’m stronger alone.”

The king let out a sigh, “But I don’t want you to be alone.”

Nathalie knew the desire was to see her married and happy not because he thought she was weak, but because he thought it was what she deserved. She was his daughter, didn’t she deserve that dream?

Nathalie sighed, “Dad, I promise you that if ever I meet someone who takes me by the hand and looks me deep in the eyes, and my instinctive reaction is not to hit them, then I’ll consider it. The problem is that there is no one like that. Everyone has an agenda, and no one can fool me long enough to get it.”

“Then can I ask you to come to keep an eye on that boy-crazy sister of yours?” he asked, “I just don’t think I can reign her in all by myself.”

Nathalie wanted to object, but she couldn’t. The Fairy King hugged her and patted her on the back. It felt good, even though Nathalie couldn’t escape the feeling her presence would only end up backfiring spectacularly.

MLB

Adrien followed the Imp across the forest and to the steep edge of the moat surrounding the castle. He secured a rope to aid his descent, but slipped and couldn’t help the cry of alarm that escaped him. Some of the Goblins heard it and wondered what it was. And then Adrien heard the voice of the Dark Forest’s King.

“Did you find him?”

“Not yet, but I thought I heard something,” someone responded.

“If you see him, kill him!” Hawkmoth ordered. Adrien clapped a hand over his mouth as he hung from a branch. He felt stupid a few seconds later when he realized his feet were dangling only a scant distance away from the ground.

The Imp was waiting beside a hole in the foundation of the castle, miming for Adrien to come over. Even with his lean physique it looked like a tight fit.

“It’s too small, I won’t fit,” Adrien argued.

The Imp mimed sucking in to fit, which Adrien did. When he was fit into the hole he crooked a finger and said, “Come on,” the Imp shook its head, “Why not?” Adrien asked it. The Imp bared its teeth and hissed, “Is she really that scary?” Adrien asked. With a happy nod the Imp shoved at his head and sent him spiraling down through the tunnel until he landed in the dungeon.

Groaning softly as he got up Adrien noticed the spiked cages hanging from the vaulted ceiling. But where would the Rosa Peace Fairy be held? It was then he noticed a pinkish yellow light emanating from the floor in one specific area. He found an a buried cell with a grate over it and in it what looked to be an egg sac for a spider. But egg sacs didn’t glow. Adrien dropped into the tiny room and crept closer. There inside, he saw the Rosa Peace Fairy simply floating there in an almost zen-like state. To be honest though, Adrien had been expecting something a little bigger.

“Are you the Rosa Peace Fairy?” Adrien asked. No response. Adrien took out the petal and waved it in front of her, that seemed to get her attention. She screamed and Adrien winced.

“Is that a primrose?” she asked.

“Yes?” Adrien answered with more a question, “Look, now that I’ve got your attention I-”

“Uhuh,” the creature shook her head.

“Wait, I just want to know-”

“I can’t hear you!” she exclaimed putting her hands over her ears.

“Are you the Rosa Peace Fairy?” Adrien asked.

Instantly her demeanor changed, “You’ve heard of me?”

“You’re the reason why I’m here,” Adrien replied.

“Oh a visitor!” she squealed with delight, “How wonderful! Yes, I’m Rose.”

“You mean the-”

“Yes, yes, the Rosa Peace Fairy, but everyone calls me Rose. It’s so much cuter, don’t you think?”

“I guess…” Adrien agreed, “Look, I- My name’s Adrien, and I-”

“Wait!” Rose stopped him, “Adrien you said?”

“Yes,”

“Come closer,” she beckoned, “I get the distinct impression I’ve seen you somewhere before. This isn’t the first time you’ve come to visit me is it?”

“Yes, actually it is.”

“Have you ever been to the Dark Forest before?”

“No,” Adrien shook his head, “As a matter of fact, the stories claim you’ve been locked up since before I was even born.”

“Oh,” Rose shrugged, “My mistake then, you just look so familiar to me. Then again, I’m sure after being imprisoned for so long any face is a familiar face.”

“We’re getting off track,” Adrien tried to re-rail the conversation, “Look, I’m here because I need you to make me the love potion.”

“What? No!”

“But-”

“How do you think I got in here?” Rose lashed out at him, “King Hawkmoth won’t listen to me about what happened on that fateful day… and I’ve been locked away ever since!”

“But I need it!”

“You don’t need anything,” Rose argued, “Normally I would love to help you, but love is part of the problem.”

“Well, then what happened on that fateful day?”

“You were listening?” Rose seemed delighted, as though attention had been something revoked since her incarceration, “You were listening! Oh, alright then, I’ll help you.”

“You will?” Adrien couldn’t believe his luck.

“If,” Rose held up a finger, “You promise to set me free.”

“I-”

“Come on, shake on it?” she held out a hand. At his odd look she added, “You can reach in, I can’t reach out.”

Tentatively Adrien stuck his hand inside. He immediately jerked it away in fright after seeing it shrink. Rose laughed, “You should see your face! Oh, wait! I can show you!” instantly she gathered her magic and when it cleared it was a pink and yellow version of Adrien with a frightened look on his face.

“Okay,” Adrien decided to put a stop to it, “I agree, shall we?”

“Petal please,” Rose sang out. When she was handed it she made even more miniatures of herself to take it as she warned him, “Believe you me, there can be… unforeseen consequences.” and then she started to sing.

MLB

Hawkmoth flew around his castle, checking in with all the Goblins he’d sent to hunt down the Elf for a report. All negative and he couldn’t understand why. It was just an Elf, and considering it was allegedly tall it should have been easy to spot. In the meantime perhaps he could brood ominously and glower at anyone who approached him. But such was not to be.

“Hi honey,” Duusu greeted.

Hawkmoth landed and turned to stalk away, “Mom no!”

“Oh relax,” she countered, he almost believed her. He was walking back to her when she brought out a woman with the phrase, “Have a look at-”

“No!” Hawkmoth walked away again.

“Mayline is into-”

“No!”

“Lavina’s hobby is-”

“Mom!”

Duusu huffed at his ignorance of the girls she’d picked out for him, “Look, all you need is somebody to l-”

“Don’t you dare say it!” he warned her.

“Typical man, they can never say the word. L-”

She was cut off again, this time because he grabbed hold of her lips and kept her from talking. She glared at him.

“This is what I get for over three decades of nursing and raising you like my own?”

She had him there. And despite how irritating she could be Hawkmoth did love his stepmother. That didn’t mean he wanted to be involved in any of her matchmaking schemes, “Promise to stop talking?”

She nodded and he let go. And to her credit she didn’t talk. She screamed instead, an off key song just because. Hawkmoth wanted to rip off his ears.

MLB

Down in the dungeon, Rose was putting the finishing touches on the love potion for Adrien. She held out the bottle and Adrien reached for it. But then she jerked it back with a look of near horror on her face.

“It’s been so long I almost forgot the last step!” she exclaimed. Adrien prepared himself for the worst, but all she did was kiss the bottle, causing the substance inside to glow a hypnotic pink color. She turned back to Adrien and held out the bottle, “Here are your directions: dust the one you love, stand in front, and make sure you’re the first she sees when she opens her eyes. Got it?”

“Got it,” Adrien affirmed.

“Good, now pull!”

Adrien reached inside for the bottle and began to pull it out, taking Rose along for the ride. It was more difficult than he had expected, as the sac resisted having its prisoner taken. But he managed to do it. And Rose, in a much more normal size, sniffed happily.

“I know what set me free,”

“Me,” Adrien replied.

“You, and love,” Rose corrected. And then she began to sing a song of joy and freedom while Adrien stowed the potion in his pack, lest he be discovered. Little did either of them know that Rose’s voice carried, and as Hawkmoth demanded silence in order to think, he heard it.

“Rosa Peace?” he wondered. Rose never sang that song unless, “No, she can’t be…” but could she? Nothing was impossible. He would just have to check.

Adrien slowly crept out of Rose’s cell. Rose was high on giddy excitement and not nearly as cautious. She flew around the room proclaiming her freedom, all the while Adrien tried to get her to calm down.

“You’re not free yet!” he hissed, “We’re still in the dungeon!”

“I’m free! I’m free!”

“Quiet!” Adrien hissed, finally managing to halt her.

“Wait!” Rose said, not quite a yell, but not quite a whisper either.

“What?” Adrien asked.

“How did you find me?”

“An Imp.”

“The Imp!” Rose sounded aggravated, “She wants the potion again! Loves to spread it around like pollen! Hey!” she caught his attention as she morphed into the Imp who’d led him there, “Never let this Imp get her hands on that potion!”

“Alright,” Adrien promised, “Now if we could-”

He silenced himself as he heard someone approaching. Quickly he and Rose hid themselves under the stairs, only narrowly avoiding being seen. Hawkmoth was there, followed by Plagg and Trixx. He looked around and saw that the grate to Rose’s cell was broken, and the pinkish-yellow light that signified her capture was gone.

“No,” if Rose was out the potion would be made again. He couldn’t let that happen, “Plagg, sound the alarm.”

Plagg let out a screeching yowl that surprisingly didn’t make it that far. Hawkmoth dragged a hand down his face, “Trixx, sound the alarm,”

Trixx let out a series of yelps and yells that carried much further and alerted everyone as to a state of urgency. Adrien and Rose were making their way through the castle corridors, trying to get out without being spotted. But Rose got impatient and flew around gathering everyone’s attention as they realized she was free. Adrien was weaving through the crowd without being paid much attention to. At least, he was until Rose singled him out by name and told him to hurry up. Then all eyes were on him. Adrien power-jumped out of the crowd and used his acrobatic prowess to evade capture. He had made it to the bridge with Trixx and Plagg in hot pursuit when a set of arms plucked him out of the sky and into the mist, where the Goblins couldn’t see him.

Rose was dealing with the King of the Dark Forest who was trying to put her back in the sac. She dodged and weaved and aimed for the open sky in one of the chambers. But Hawkmoth was right on her tail, growling menacingly at her.

“What happened before will never happen!” he said as he swept the sac and recaptured her, “Not ever again,” he hissed, descending into the castle keep once more. Rose cried out to Adrien, praying for him to remember what she had told him. Adrien watched sadly as she was taken back. The Imp, on the other hand, was jumping all over him, eager for its prize.

“Oh no,” Adrien said as he pulled the Imp off and kept it at arm’s length by the scruff of its neck, “Rose warned me about you and you’re not getting anywhere near this potion. And just to make sure, I’m sorry, but I have to do this,” he tossed the Imp into the abyss before turning away. But guilt made him stop and turned back, “Are you okay?” he called, he received a rather peeved but affirmative noise in response. Assured of the Imp’s well-being Adrien hurried off.

MLB

Hawkmoth was angry at Rose’s attempt at escape. He took it out on her by shaking the sac until she was near nauseous. He felt more rage than he had since that fateful day Rose kept trying to talk about. Never before had he hated a being more than he hated this Fairy who had unknowingly ruined lives while trying to spread her idea of love.

“What did you do?” he snarled at her. No way an Elf would risk life and limb to rescue her without some sort of reward.

“Well,” Rose began, “The Elf asked me to make him a love potion.”

“But you didn’t have a primrose petal,” Hawkmoth countered, internally sighing with relief.

“And he brought me a primrose petal,” Rose continued.

“No, you made the potion?” he couldn’t believe she would be so stupid as to do that.

“Yes, I made the potion. Just like I did for you on that fateful day you refuse to let me talk about.”

“Where is the Elf, now?” Hawkmoth growled at her.

Rose giggled, “Probably halfway to the Elf Festival by now!” she didn’t seem concerned. But of course she wouldn’t be. As the creator she wasn’t affected by the love potion, and she was so enamored with the idea of love she didn’t realize just how dangerous that potion could be.

Hawkmoth growled in frustration, but had her taken back to the dungeons. He gathered his subjects and formulated a plan. They had to get that potion back at all costs before it fell into the wrong hands. Elves were gullible, and not known for being very bright. Hawkmoth wouldn’t doubt there was a mastermind behind the Elf’s trespass into his domain. Which spelled war on the horizon. But not so long as he could get back his potion.

With a distinctly villainous smile he appealed to his masses, “Who wants to go to a party tonight?”

They whooped with passion, ready to invade as their King commanded. One way or another, Hawkmoth was getting that potion back.

Chapter Text

The Elf Spring Dance was in full swing, and despite his taller than average stature Adrien was picked to sing and entertain for the evening. He kept as low as he could while onstage, trying to allow the band to have their attention as well. He sung while Marinette stood sullenly next to the king. The latter had forbidden the former from joining in because she couldn’t be trusted not to flirt with anyone who crossed her path. Adrien tried to appeal to her with his song, going so far as to make a heart with his hands and present it to her. To anyone else, it likely couldn’t have been more obvious. But Marinette only gave him a smile before turning her attention to the guards that stood nearby and wiggling her fingers enticingly at them.

Adrien slumped but didn’t allow it to seep into his performance. Nathalie meanwhile had been forced into the line dance, which she completed with as little enthusiasm as she could, which was to say none at all. The sprites, Tikki, Pollen, and Nooroo hovered near Marinette but kept a careful eye on the crown princess. Adrien looked out over the crowd, seeing if he could spot his cohort in the plot he was to carry out. He noticed three men who were closely associated with Sebastian hovering around as though looking to spot Nathalie, and then when they did they moved their mouths but not their gazes.

“Tonight boys,” Sebastian said as he peeped out from behind them, “She’ll know, and she will love me.” he made eye contact with Adrien, who pulled the neck of the potion’s bottle out of his back and winked. Sebastian gave him a thumbs up and winked back. He then decided to join the dancers, obviously attempting to get close to Nathalie.

Nathalie, for her part, was absolutely flabbergasted. This had been the exact reason why she hadn’t wanted to come to the dance. This, right here. The exact reason. She should have known better than to think Sebastian would run and lick his wounds, even for a day. He brushed everything off like it didn’t bother him, that ineffable facade had given him the appearance of being level-headed when he really wasn’t. Well, no matter, her worst outcome had come true, now all she needed was to leave.

Unbeknownst to Adrien, the Imp had followed him back from the Dark Forest and was now sniffing around, trying to find the potion she was after. Given that she was so little, however, the best approach was to find higher ground. She spotted the low hanging roof of a building close to the grounds and scampered towards it. The climb wouldn’t easy, but it wouldn’t be too difficult, and one she found the Elf, she’d find her potion.

MLB

Nathalie rolled her eyes and groaned in disgust as she saw Sebastian mingle closer and closer to her. Then she remembered Marinette. Though Marinette would never be serious about chasing her sibling’s ex-fiance, she would still flirt for the sake of flirting, and that was something Nathalie was counting on. She headed onto the stage as Adrien made a show of going off to the side -ostensibly to let the band shine, but actually so that he could open the bottle and let the magic do its work.

“Mari,” Nathalie whispered to her, “Sebastian’s here, so I’m leaving.” she spread her wings and leapt into the air, brushing by and distracting their father enough that he let go of the younger girl.

Marinette, instantly following Nathalie’s plan, squealed with delight, “Finally! I’m dancing!”

The Fairy King reached after her but she slipped away before he could really get ahold of her. He curled his fingers in frustration and coupled the gesture with a groan. Instantly Marinette went for Sebastian, intent on dancing and having a good time. Sebastian, instantly uncomfortable with this -ulterior motive or not it was always weird to date your ex’s sister, especially if you were trying to get that ex back- was trying to get Adrien’s attention so he could do something about it. Unfortunately, the stopper in the potion bottle was stuck and Adrien was preoccupied trying to get it out.

What happened as this played out could only be described as a disaster in the making. Nathalie was busy sulking on a rooftop. The Imp had discovered Adrien fiddling with the bottle. Adrien was still fiddling with the bottle. Marinette was dancing with Sebastian who was trying to keep her at arm’s length without appearing rude. And Hawkmoth’s Goblins had silently started to enclose the festival, hiding in the shadows and atop the rafters of the stage. The moment things really began to go wrong felt -as such moments would- like it it all happened in slow motion. The Imp waited just long enough for Adrien to get the stopper out before she pounced. Adrien got the stopper out in time to come face to face with Marinette, potion in hand and her expression looking so trusting and happy to see him. The Goblins took over for the musicians one by one, turning the music into a mixture of sour notes but no one was really aware of what was going on.

Nathalie, startled by the abrupt shift in musical tone looked to see Goblins from the Dark Forest invading the party. Drawing her sword she flew down trying to fight them off. And yet her skill and speed were useless when she announced herself with a battle cry. Two Goblins apprehended her, taking her weapon away. With teeth bared and gritted she struggled against them.

One of them said, “This one’s too feisty, go get the smaller one,” he handed a sack to a third Goblin standing nearby. The other Goblin headed for Marinette.

“Mari no!” Nathalie exclaimed, flapping her wings in vain trying to reach her sibling and keep her out of harm’s way. Foolishly believing there would be no need for it Marinette had left her flail belt at home. Now it would prove to be her undoing.

“Hi Adrien,” Marinette greeted, completely ignorant of the chaos going on around her.

Adrien froze, unsure of what he should do. He didn’t have to worry about it, the Imp tackled him before he could make a decision. And then Adrien was dealing with trying to get her off while Marinette watched in surprise. Sebastian quickly made himself scarce. This night was turning into a total disaster, and that was before Nathalie realized the contents of Adrien’s glowing bottle.

“Love potion?” Nathalie couldn’t believe it, “No! Marinette!”

The Elf continued to fight the Imp, holding the bottle out at arm’s length. But the Imp swung him around, the contents sloshed out of the bottle, and right into Marinette’s face. She cried out in surprise and covered her face as the dust hit her, the sounds of coughing could be heard as she staggered backwards, right into two Goblins with the burlap sack. They slipped it over her and swept her up, pulling tight on the drawstrings to secure her. The creatures looked so proud of themselves. More and more of them flooded the festival, jumping on lantern strings to terrify the crowd, subduing guards and even the king himself as he tried to go after them. Nathalie continued to struggle against the pair keeping her down, fury building as no one seemed to know what to do to fight back.

Marinette called for Adrien’s help as the sack was placed on the stage, likely terribly frightened with everything going on. Adrien now felt awful, he’d done this to Marinette, the love of his life and he’d love-dusted her. And while he was in the middle of this instant pity-party the Imp took the opportunity to steal the potion and scamper away, leaping atop an unknowing Goblin and scuttling off from the rafters of the stage. Adrien knew that what he had done to Marinette was nothing compared to what he had just allowed to happen. The Imp lived to spread the potion around, and Adrien had no idea what the cure was.

“I’m sorry Rose,” he muttered under his breath as he watched the Imp flee the scene. Another few Goblins forced his hands behind his back.

There was a moment of precipice, as they all knew something far worse was coming. The Goblins, as terrifying as they were, for the most part lacked the common sense and foresight to pull off the blocking of people that they were doing now. Someone had to have instructed them or else they would probably just be running rampant. But the only one with enough intelligence in the Dark Forest to pull off something like that was their king.

As though the thought summoned him his voice could be heard loud and clear and absolutely menacing, “Where’s my potion!”

Fog had built, causing his silhouette to loom larger than life as he stood on the stage. There was no coming out, he just appeared there. And then out of the gloom he stepped. Unlike Fairies and Goblins King Hawkmoth was an entirely new beast. Quite literally, covered head to foot in a bristling, armor like coat with spikes at his shoulders. His face was slightly gaunt, only the skin there and on his palms not coated with that exo-skeleton armor of his. He carried a staff made from a twisted twig, a purple jewel somehow secured in the center. And his wings buzzed, flaring out like a cat raising its hackles. Each step was punctuated by the tap of the staff as it echoed against the stage floor, he strolled to the crowd, reveling in the looks of fear he garnered before settling down into an intimidating expression.

Nathalie’s sword had been planted into the stage to get it away from her while the guards forced her to lie flat top its surface. It gave them more leverage and kept her from fighting back. Hawkmoth took it and tossed it into the air, uncaring of where it would land. Marinette was placed onto the stage. Adrien reached for her only for the sword to return to earth, point down, and nearly take Adrien’s hand off. Goblins commanded the stage as Hawkmoth ranted and raved about how he’d been trespassed against, stolen from, abused as the monarch of the Dark Forest. Marinette was pushed around, Goblins on dragonflies hovered nearby, she was secured to two of them and they lifted her up into the air.

They were planning to take her away. Marinette, poor boy-crazy Marinette who hadn’t done anything wrong. And who was Hawkmoth to think that kidnapping the princess of the neighboring kingdom was recompense for a perceived slight -the stealing of a love potion from a prisoner? Instantly the fury that had been bubbling as Nathalie was forced to subjugate before this man exploded through her veins. With a strength she didn’t know she possessed Nathalie broke free long enough to stand on the stage. Another Goblin came in to aid his compatriots as her arms were alternately pulled out of their hold, grabbing her about the waist to slow her progress. Nathalie bared her teeth as she growled out an order to him.

“Release my sister you scaly-backed cockroach!”

It caught Hawkmoth’s attention. He sneered at her, insulted but clearly amused by her slight. He thought her a novelty, because she thought herself tough.

“Well would you look at this?” he drew a clawed finger under her chin. Nathalie jerked her head away and glowered at him. Hawkmoth’s countenance darkened as he got close to her and sinisterly snarled, “Return the love potion by moon-down, tough girl, or you’ll never see your sister again.”

Nathalie jerked as she growled back at him. “When I get my hands on you I’ll have your head on a stick!” she punctuated the last word with a punch. Right in his face, but due to her position he’d have nothing more than a bruised cheek (and perhaps a bruised ego as well).

Unfortunately a bruised ego made him more volatile than ever. Angered by this insolence Hawkmoth raised his staff as he looked at Nathalie, ready to strike her, perhaps even prepared to kill her. Nathalie knew this would be coming, but was braced for anything if it meant getting her sister freed. But Adrien took responsibility and called his attention away.

“Wait!” Hawkmoth stopped and looked over at the abnormally tall and lanky Elf, “Take me instead! I took the love potion!” Adrien confessed as if no one else had figured it out yet.

Thoroughly distracted by this admission Hawkmoth turned to terrify the Elf, “Then give it back,” Hawkmoth ordered. It was clear that this whole thing was because of that illegal potion. If he got the potion then Marinette would be returned, as simple as that. If only it was as simple as that.

“I don’t have it,” Adrien admitted. And had it been just a few moments before Hawkmoth made his appearance Adrien would have had the potion to return. But now, the Imp had it and was likely spreading love around Fields and Forest as they spoke.

With a sneer of disgust at this incompetence Hawkmoth raised his wings and flew into the air, raising his voice so that he could be heard, “You heard my terms!” he said, pointing his staff at the setting moon, “The potion, by moon-down, or else all of you will be next!”

Then, just to tease them he flew around the air as his Goblins scurried about, relishing in the terror they were spreading. Hawkmoth landed in front of Nathalie and sneered incredibly close to her, laughing at her and taunting her. Nathalie loosed another fist but he caught it in his own, smirking at her and laughing all the harder at her feeble attempt at a second blow. He threw her fist down where she was further restrained as noises of frustration escaped her and took to the air, landing on the dragonflies that carried Marinette beneath their wings. Creatures of the Dark Forest began to trash the instruments on stage and make a general mess. Other Goblins mounted other dragonflies and they all took off, Hawkmoth’s laughter echoing across the night sky.

MLB

Nathalie managed to break free of the hold only to find her own sword aimed at her throat. Hands up in passivity the Goblins turned to shared a look of satisfaction. That was their undoing. With a swift kick Nathalie disarmed them and re-armed herself. But as she slashed at them they ran for some dragonflies that had been left unattended. They hopped aboard and flew away, but as Nathalie spread her wings and leapt into the air to go after them she felt a stern tug at her ankle and she was pulled back to the ground. Twisting in her holder’s grip she saw it was her father.

“Dad?” she questioned, “What are you doing? Let me go!”

“I forbid you to fly into the Dark Forest like that!” her father argued as he continued to pull her back to the earth.

“Dad I let this happen,” Nathalie argued, “I have to get her back.”

“No, I have to get her back. I need you to stay here and stay safe!”

Nathalie wanted to argue. How could he say something like that at a time like this? Marinette needed her and Nathalie needed to take care of her sister as she had since they day they’d found her on the palace doorstep. She couldn’t just let Hawkmoth get away with capturing a member of the royal family. And yet, she understood her father’s concern because it was that same concern driving Nathalie to go after them. But she refused to stay here waiting like a wilting flower, too delicate to handle the outside world. Nathalie needed to go after Marinette. But she could appease her father, for now.

“No need to worry!” Sebastian said as he strode out of wherever he’d been hiding during all this, “I will rescue the princess.”

“Oh really?” Nathalie raised a cynical brow at him, “And just where were you earlier?”

“I was out fighting a dozen Goblins,” Sebastian shot back quickly.

“Sebastian, yes!” her father exclaimed, buying into the farce without hesitation.

Nathalie groaned in disgust at how easily the man could lie to them, “No.”

But the Fairy King paid no attention to this, he asked Sebastian what the knight thought he would need. Sebastian began listing off munitions and supplies and soldiers. He was going to raise an army to “rescue” Marinette. And Nathalie knew that he would enjoy the position too much, too much to get there before something happened. And since Sebastian was the golden boy of the Fairy Kingdom, even after his messy end with the crown princess, no one would dare to question his orders or pace. If Sebastian was her only hope, then Marinette was doomed.

“We can’t trust him,” Nathalie interjected. And she knew first-hand how badly this could be messed up. Not with Marinette on the line, Nathalie refused. But her father wouldn’t listen to reason. Well, a man’s opinion always carried more weight than a woman’s in this society. It had been one of the things Nathalie had been determined to change when she became queen.

It was as she was searching for a way out of this that she saw Adrien. And then her anger at his involvement with all of this was too raw to be held back. Nathalie always tried to be forgiving of Adrien’s flaws and screw-ups because she knew he had never been taught how to behave. The learning curve of what was acceptable to him was incredibly skewed because he’d been ignored or abused until Marinette had brought him home. But this, it was nigh unforgivable, even taking his feelings for Marinette into account.

“Adrien,” she growled, but then she softened, “How could you?” she wanted to know what would possess him to do something as dangerous as make a love potion, what would make him use it on Marinette, “What were you thinking?”

“I-” she saw Adrien’s eyes dart over to the King and Sebastian and instantly it clicked for her. It wouldn’t be difficult to believe that Sebastian, who was currently taking charge of the situation like the archetypal hero, would be the one behind all of this. But Adrien left Sebastian out of it, “I don’t know.”

“What do we do?” Nathalie asked him as she wrapped her arms around herself. Noticing her distress the king left his hold on her shoulder, and fairly loosely at that. A way to let her know he was there for her without confining her. Nathalie stepped out and began to pace as her worry started to consume her, “Marinette she’s- she’s not strong enough to- she’s not going to-”

“I’ll rescue her,” Adrien said as he stood.

“No,” Nathalie instantly shut him down, “It’s too dangerous, even for you.”

“No,” Adrien pleaded, “I can, I promise you.”

“No,” Nathalie repeated sternly. There was a moment of instant clarity for her, “I’m the only one who can.”

“So what do I do?” Adrien asked her.

“Get the potion back and meet me at the castle before moon-down.” Nathalie instructed, “Pollen, Nooroo!” the sprites appeared, “Stay with Adrien, help him get the potion back. Tikki, you’re with me.”

The purple and yellow sprites nodded and went to float around the Elf’s head. Tikki looked at Nathalie, “Where are we going?” she asked.

“We’re going to get my sister back!” Nathalie spread her wings and took off with a flourish, startling her father into calling after her as she shrank into the night sky. Tikki sped up, a little red dot in the distance as they flew further and further away.

Back on the ground Sebastian chuckled at her antics. Let her play the tough girl, and he could gain more glory, and her affection, by rescuing them both.

“Don’t you worry about it your majesty,” he simpered to the worried King, “It won’t be any less difficult rescuing two princesses than it would be one.”

Instantly the King turned on Adrien with a shout of the Elf’s name, “Adrien?”

Adrien shrank, “Sire?”

“If anything happens to either of my daughters, I’m holding you personally responsible!” and with that he stormed away.

Adrien looked to Sebastian for a bit of assistance, but all he got was Sebastian agreeing with the king that, “This is all your fault!”

Adrien glowered at the dirt, feeling betrayed. A hand curled into a shaking fist as Adrien glowered at the knight from under his bangs. Pollen and Nooroo gave him pats on the head to calm him.

“Don’t worry about it,” Pollen whispered in his ear.

“Yes,” Nooroo concurred, “He’s not worth it, don’t give him the satisfaction.”

“Right,” Adrien rose to his feet, his full height and the murderous gleam in his eyes intimidating any of the other Elves who might have had something to say to him into silence.

“Where should we start looking?” Pollen asked.

“I think I have a pretty good idea,” Adrien smirked as he used his agility and strength and with a running start, started parkouring into the darkness.

Chapter Text

Back at the castle Hawkmoth settled in his throne, ordering the prisoner to be brought forth. However, since most of his subjects were a bit feral in nature they thought this meant they would be able to eat her. It wasn’t surprising, Goblins had eaten Fairies in the past, and were this any other Fairy than the one they had captured he would have let them.

“No eating!” he ordered. A chorus of groans was his response, “I don’t care, she’s our bait to get the potion back.”

“But-”

“No buts, bring her forth.”

The sack was pushed close to him and then untied. From it Marinette rose, looking groggy and rubbing at her eyes. No one noticed that the dust she was rubbing out was pink. Hawkmoth’s voice caught her attention,

“Welcome, little princess,” he greeted with faux cordiality, “Do you know who I am?”

Marinette peered at him and blinked in a rather confused manner. Hawkmoth wondered what had happened to make her like that. She hadn’t been handled with delicacy true, but he would have noticed an injury severe enough to leave visible head trauma. It was off putting to say the least. While he wanted her frightened and malleable, it hadn’t exactly been his intention to seriously hurt her. He was walking a fine rope as it was considering he’d kidnapped her, but then something of immense value and potency had been stolen from him so it was fair. Though if the princess returned damaged he would certainly understand why the Fairy King would want to cease the peace treaty that had been put in place by their own fathers some decades ago.

Marinette still hadn’t said anything. Hawkmoth clicked his fingers to her, “Hello?”

Then her eyes grew wide, pupils dilated until the irises were nearly eclipsed by the dark circles. Her smile was hesitant and shy, but at the same time big and stupid.

“Sugar pie!” she exclaimed, clasping her hands together under her chin.

Hawkmoth was instantly taken aback, “What?” he deadpanned, utterly confused by her response.

Softly Marinette’s wings spread and she took off, lightly floating over to him and taking his hands even as he tried to maintain a ferocious atmosphere. She was giggling like an idiot and she sighed dreamily. Hawkmoth reached for his staff and used it to push her back.

“Stay away,” he warned her, “I’m evil, and I am not to be messed around with.”

Still in the air, Marinette leaned against the end of the staff pointing at her. With an indulgent smile and a girlish sigh she replied, “Oh silly,” then she began to sing, using the staff as a way to pull herself closer to him.

Hawkmoth tried to literally shake her off, “Stop that!” he ordered. But she wouldn’t, he was tackled back to his throne, with her curled up in his lap and her arms around his neck. Pushing her off only let her hover in the air until she pushed against him. He flew up, trying to get out of reach but it was no use, she would follow. As she sung and stared like a besotted fool he noticed a strange glow to her skin, something that even the happiest of Fairies never usually possessed. Things started to click. This attitude, this behavior, he recognized it. Spring, and Rose, they always brought this on. And Rose had admitted to making the potion, but that mean? Of course it did, what was the point of making a love potion if its intent was to sit there unused? The potion had been used, and now he was going to suffer the fallout.

“The potion,” he managed to get out through the jumbling of his thoughts while Marinette fluttered around him, “She’s been dusted! It’s the potion!”

Not that the revelation mattered, since Marinette’s voice reverberated off the stark castle walls into a frequency that was causing his subjects visible pain. They couldn’t hear anything over her singing. Hawkmoth continued to yell, trying to get them to listen but Marinette just followed his example and sang louder. He grabbed her by the shoulders and held her at arm’s length. She stopped singing, too elated with the contact to continue and Hawkmoth slowly brought them back to the ground.

“Plagg, Trixx, take her away !” he ordered them, “Lock this love-crazy creature in the dungeon.”

“She is crazy,” another voice cut in as Trixx and Plagg went to execute his command. The last person he wanted as a witness to this debacle, Duusu, “Crazy in love with you. Do I hear wedding bells in the near future?”

That set Marinette off again and she started to sing, pulling against Trixx and Plagg’s hold as they tried to escort her to the dungeon cells.

Hawkmoth glared at his step-mother, “Not with a Fairy, not with a princess, and most certainly not with a Fairy Princess,” he growled, “I hate princesses.”

“Fine,” Duusu let it go, “But even if I have to look under every rock in this forest, I’m not going to let you die sad and alone.”

Of course she wouldn’t. But Hawkmoth wouldn’t allow that to distract him, “Bring me Rosa Peace!” he ordered, slamming a fist down on the arm of his chair. He needed an antidote, or at least a way to shut her up for the time being.

MLB

Meanwhile Nathalie had flown to the border between the Fairy Fields and the Dark Forest. She stopped, hesitating, remembering everything that lurked and was said to lurk in the darkness. Her breath shuddered in and out of her, audibly trembling as her hands began to shake. The memories real and imagined, the nightmares, the stories they told of the innumerable dangers in that place. Nathalie wasn’t sure she was ready for it. But then Marinette, poor Marinette, she was trapped in there. Nathalie wouldn’t be worth the title she’d been born with if she just left her sibling to Hawkmoth’s devices.

Tikki watched silently as Nathalie was trying to reaffirm her own decision. A touch of her rounded hand brought Nathalie out of her head and back to the present. Huge blue eyes met her own and Nathalie knew Tikki was silently encouraging her.

Right. Now was not the time to be doubt’s prisoner. Now was the time to take a risk, and chance everything. Look out Dark Forest, Nathalie was coming. One final glance back at the land that was her home, then a nod to Tikki who signaled being ready when she was. Nathalie drew her sword and a look of fierce determination spread her wings and jumped into the abyss.

Her wings, usually quite light, lithe, and graceful were not made for the brambles and briers of the Dark Forest. Nathalie had to watch out a great deal as her shadow swept across the forest floor. There were things Nathalie had never seen before and couldn’t begin to imagine had existed. She and Tikki saw a circle made of thread, but coming close to inspect it brought out a fearsome eight-legged monster that send the two fluttering away. As they did Nathalie’s feet brushed against something and it began to move. Ferns, that unfurled and spread their leaves to the night sky. As Nathalie and Tikki evaded them they ended up Flying past a Goblin who spotted them. However, since Goblins couldn’t fly the most it could do was raise the alarm.

Nathalie and Tikki had to do some pretty skillful flying maneuvers to evade the other creatures that proceeded to pop out of nowhere, each of them reaching for the Fairy interloper. To get out of reach Nathalie flew high into the sky, just in reach of the moon’s light. It glimmered off her wings, making them turn a silvery purple while Tikki was thrown into a splendorous contrast.

“Well,” Tikki giggled, always trying to make the best of a situation, “You wanted adventure.”

“And now, I’ve got it.” Nathalie shook her head, “Come on!”

Adrien, Pollen, and Nooroo meanwhile were chasing after the Imp. Adrien was on one of the Field’s dragonflies while the Sprites swarmed around him. Each of them carried a rope and were to use them in tandem to subdue the creature. But as the Imp scurried along it gained more and more speed. Not to mention the distances it was quickly eating up, the potion caught in its tail. But the chase was uneventful as every rope that was tossed was evaded with ease. The Imp was just as acrobatic as Adrien was.

“Now what?” Pollen asked.

Adrien decided to tie his rope to the bo staff Nathalie had insisted he learn how to use and threw it the same way he would as if he were casting a fishing line. It caught hold of the Imp’s foot and Adrien pulled tight, but in much the same manner as a hooked fish the Imp began to wriggle and writhe, pulling at the rope and trying to break free of it. It jerked to and fro and a sharp movement pulled Adrien off his dragonfly. He dug his heels into the ground, but the Imp was pulling hard enough to cause him to skid as he struggled to pull back. It was a tug of war and there was no telling who the winner would be. But just as suddenly the Imp stopped resisting, and allowed the Elf to start tugging. Adrien relaxed, not the wisest move at all. As soon as she felt that tiny bit of slack on the rope the Imp darted off, and completely caught off guard Adrien was dragged along for the ride right into a thick stem of a tall flower. Just as Adrien turned around he saw the Imp continue to run in circles around him, tightening the rope and securing him to the stem.

“Adrien!” Pollen and Nooroo exclaimed, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Adrien assured them, “though my pride is a little bruised.”

To add insult to injury the Imp darted in front of Adrien, slipped the loop off its foot and with its tail wiggled the bottle of the love potion in front of the three before giggling, blowing a kiss, and slipping off.

Adrien sighed, “And now I’m mad.” He drew a blade from his pocket and cut the rope binding free from him and his staff, shrinking the latter down and tucking it in his pocket. Without a word he signaled to continue the chase.

MLB

Despite being dragged down into the dungeon Marinette hadn’t ceased her singing. And by some unfortunate magic it was echoing throughout the entire castle. Hawkmoth’s Goblins were near tears as the sound continued to assault their ears. Hawkmoth himself was grinding his teeth together in irritation. He was waiting for Rose to be brought to him so that he could force an antidote out of her. Ha, like that would be an easy task. Rose was a romantic, but she had no notion of the concept of love. But then, who was he to judge in that department? If anything his understanding of what love was was probably just as skewed as hers.

“Alright, alright,” Duusu was back yet again, “We get that she sings pretty, but she’s just not your type. So I think I’ve found someone who’s positively perfect for you!”

“Not now mother!” Hawkmoth dismissed her before she could bring in yet another hopelessly hopeful girl to meet him. He would normally try to get her to stop altogether, but years upon years of this had made him aware that his step-mother had a tenacious hold on seeing him settled -perhaps due to her own want of grandchildren- and if twenty years of ordering her to stop refused to daunt her, he didn’t know what would.

“Fine,” she relented for the moment, “But I’m not giving up.”

That indomitable spirit of hers had made her a force to be reckoned with when she’d ruled the forest with Hawkmoth’s father. Now, however, well it was less than pleasant to be on the receiving end of that particular quirk of hers.

Panting and footsteps made their way to his ears. Plagg and Trixx. Hawkmoth breathed a sigh of relief, “Finally.” He could get this to stop.

The creatures planted the staff of Rose’s cage into the floor so that it would stand on its own. The tiny sprite like form that was Rose noticed the dowager and giggled cordially.

“Queen Duusu,” she faked a curtsy.

Duusu stared at her, utterly unimpressed, “Rose,”

Rose laughed again, “I think it’s so amusing how you keep trying. Twenty years not enough time to figure it out?”

“Like you’re one to talk,” Duusu scoffed, “With your magic recipe; for failure!”

As if to prove her wrong Marinette’s singing echoed louder and more unbearably than it had before. Hawkmoth covered his ears, “Well the recipe’s working now, isn’t it?”

“I told you it would work,” Rose replied, “It always works,”

“I need the antidote,” Hawkmoth said while his stepmother scoffed again,

“You say it works? Then explain what happened to my son!”

Hawkmoth growled at her, but Duusu merely sighed with fondness, “You always did have your father’s smile.”

“Give me the antidote!” Hawkmoth ordered.

“Why should I?” Rose parried.

“Because everyone is suffering thanks to the effects of a potion you made!”

“But what punishment do I have to worry about? What will you do if I refuse? Lock me away? Ooh!” she wasn’t scared for her noncompliance and to add insult to injury Rose began to sing with Marinette, causing more distress to the Goblins.

The noises of the Goblins coupled with the princess’ singing was grating on his sanity and the last calm nerve in his body. His orders for everyone to silence themselves fell on deaf ears, everyone too concerned with their own suffering to pay the sovereign any heed. Hawkmoth took to the air, declaring he would take care of it himself.

Down in the dungeons Marinette was clutching the bars of her prison cell, singing without rest so that someone would take her back to her beloved. But the longer she sang, and no one came for her the more dejected she started to get. Just when her voice gave off out of sadness she saw that he’d come. With a noise of longing she reached for him, but he stayed just far enough away to keep her from touching him.

“If you don’t keep your mouth shut,” Hawkmoth growled lowly at her, “I’m going to rip your wings off and stuff them down your throat, my pretty little Fairy princess. Is that clear?”

Rather than being frightened, which she should have been given the severity of the threat, Marinette giggled and booped him on the nose, “You’re such a charmer,”

Without warning she reached out and stuck something on his chest. Hawkmoth drew back and looked at the creation, dried petals of purple, blue, and green were cobbled together. And it rested on his chestplate as though it had been designed for such a thing. He had to admit, for her to put it together out of just the materials in her cell was kind of impressive. Or it would be, if it didn’t make him feel so undignified.

“What is that?” he asked, unable to keep the slight revulsion out of his tone.

“I made it special for you,” Marinette replied earnestly.

“You made this… for me?” he repeated in a rather dumbfounded way.

“It looks so good on you,” she complimented. Through his sputters of attempted replies she added, “I hope you like it.”

“This isn’t!” Hawkmoth shook his fists, he wanted to rail against the gift but he saw the wide and hopeful eyes she was giving him. Rose had told him once, that if the potioned person’s beloved was ever rejected by them they could literally die of a broken heart. Hawkmoth just wanted the potion back before it could do anymore harm, killing a princess of his closest neighbors was not an option he wanted to choose unless absolutely forced to.

He curbed his anger and cleared his throat. In a slightly hoarse voice, likely from the gentleness in it being disused for so long, he said, “Well, um...” he cracked his shoulder and neck, feeling rather awkward with his tall frame, “Thank you. It’s, it’s…” he felt like vomiting as the next word came out of his mouth, “lovely.”

But just that one little bit of praise seemed to set her off again. She was fluttering about her cage singing at the top of her lungs.

“No, no, no.” he tried to explain, “You don’t love me, what you’re feeling is the potion…” his argument petered out as he realized she wasn’t paying the least bit of attention to his words, “You know…”

And Hawkmoth realized she just couldn’t help herself. Fairies sung to express their emotions, as annoying as it was to everyone in the Dark Forest who had to listen to it. Marinette reached for him again and he took her hand in his and awkwardly patted it. But she continued to sing and it was hurting his ears.

“Stop!” he cried -not for mercy but clearly on the edge- and covered his ears. Not a moment later the singing ceased and Marinette was standing there, pinning him with an adoring gaze. Well, this was interesting wasn’t it. She was so “in love” she would do anything he asked of her. This called for a little bit of well placed manipulation, if only to keep her quiet, “You must be tired from all that singing you’ve been doing.”

“Tired?” Marinette quickly shook her head, “I could sing forever!”

Hawkmoth hushed her, “Why don’t you take a little nap,” at the suggestion Marinette yawned and turned to the non-sentient mushroom in her cell which served as bed and chair and began to curl up on it, wings folding over her like a blanket “I have to go now, but I promise I won’t be gone long.”

But as he turned to walk away he heard her cry out, “Wait!”

“What?” he asked without turning around, trying to hide his irritation. Since really, it wasn’t her fault. She hadn’t chosen to be love-dusted, nor had she chosen to look at him first afterwards. If anything she was only involved because the crown princess had been too much for his Goblins to handle. More’s the pity, because at least she wouldn’t have been driving half his subjects insane with her incessant singing.

“Tell me your name, please?” Marinette sounded so tiny and vulnerable. And perhaps it was paternal instinct -something Duusu said he’d feel when the time came but that he’d never felt before- that Hawkmoth found he couldn’t refuse.

Putting on a front of confidence and impassiveness he turned to her and proclaimed, “I am King Hawkmoth of the Dark Forest.”

“Aww!” Marinette cooed sleepily, “My Hawky-wocky King-wingy.”

“Hawkmoth,” he corrected.

They bickered like this over her cutesifying his title until she succumbed to sleep with a whispered, “Goodnight, sweet Hawky-wocky.”

He wanted to growl in frustration, and a muted rumble of it could be heard, just barely over the silence of the room. But he grabbed hold of the doors to the cell and begrudgingly whispered, “Good night,” in return.

Once they closed over fully he breathed a sigh of relief. Only to be startled when one of his subjects loudly announced their presence.

“Quiet!” he hissed, “She’s asleep and not singing!”

“Sorry,” the sentry instantly lowered his volume, “It’s just…”

“What now?” Hawkmoth nearly groaned.

“There’s been reports from all over the forest. Of lots of creatures getting,” he looked around furtively as though someone might have been eavesdropping, “Love-dusted.”

And now his rage was bubbling over. He wanted to shout, and he nearly did. But just as quickly Hawkmoth quieted his ire along with his voice, “Bring them in, bring them all in. And lock them up, away from each other.”

“Right, sir,” and the sentry bounded off to carry along his monarch’s orders.

MLB

Everywhere as far as the average eye could see creatures were hit with pink dust and falling for the first thing they laid eyes on. It meant that there were all sorts of odd couples now populating the Dark Forest and its borderlands. The Imp sighed dreamily at the sight of love being spread everywhere. Only to start running as she saw the Elf coming for her. Adrien chased after her, hair getting messed up and green eyes gleaming ferally in the darkness. But the Imp was fast, though more importantly -she was cocky. After executing a particularly difficult acrobatic trick she turned to mockingly salute her pursuer, only to be caught in a net made from the remains of the rope that Adrien had sliced up while escaping, the ends held by Pollen and Nooroo.

The Imp struggled against the netting but it was too finely crafted to break. The Sprites with Adrien held the ends securely and kept the opening tightly closed. There was no way to escape.

“Alright you little mischief maker,” Adrien approached, “We caught you fair and square, now hand it over!”

The Imp crossed her arms and the universal pose of considering their options. It was supposed to irritate them, but Adrien merely laughed.

“Alright, have it your way. I’ll just be bringing both you and the potion to the king of the Dark Forest. Wonder what he’ll want to do with the one who led to the creation and distribution of an illegal substance through his kingdom, don’t you?”

Instantly the potion was stuck up through the tiny opening in the net by the neck. Adrien pulled the potion out and tossed it a small distance into the air. Catching it and putting it away he added, “Thanks. Alright guys, let her go.”

The Sprites were dumbfounded, “But Adrien-” Pollen started.

“A deal’s a deal. She gave up the potion, give her her freedom.”

Sharing a look Pollen and Nooroo dropped the net. It unfurled around her, giving the Imp freedom. But instead of taking it and running she sat there morosely as Adrien and the others began to trek away. Feeling pity for her, Nooroo circled back and offered a hand to the Imp, gesturing for her to join them. Instantly the Imp was back to her bouncy and mischievous self. She ran along and hopped onto Adrien’s shoulders, but made no attempt to reach for the bottle again.

They headed for the castle, where Nathalie had told her to meet them. But along the way they ran into Sebastian and the army the king had garnered for him. But considering the volume of people and the density of the forest it was slow progress since everything had to be cleared to make a path for Sebastian and his steed as they led the charge. Adrien wasn’t sure what to make of the sight, nor was he sure of what to do. Should he approach them? Most of the army was comprised of Elves who weren’t fond of them on a normal day, let alone the terror he’d caused them earlier this evening. And Sebastian, he’d left Adrien to take the blame for a plan that had been his in the first place. Something deep within him called for retribution. And what better retribution could there be than beating him to the castle and explaining the truth of the situation to everyone? Sebastian would be held accountable for all the events since he’d been the one conspiring and Adrien had been manipulated into helping. The ramifications of making a love potion would be severe and once the Fairy King heard of Sebastian’s intentions with the potion there would be no diplomatic immunity saving him.

Barely suppressing a smirk Adrien disappeared into the underbrush. But just as quickly came back, unable to resist a small bit of personal payback. Adrien extended his bo staff carefully so that it landed between the rabbit’s front and hind legs on its last jump. When it made to go forward again Adrien lifted and blocked the leap of the legs, causing the rabbit to stumble and throw Sebastian in the process, slowing down the trek of the army as their leader struggled to regain his footing and dignity on the rough terrain. Adrien, the Sprites, and the Imp snickered as they faded into the darkness once more, their destination Hawkmoth’s castle.

Chapter Text

Nathalie swiftly made her way to the castle, spotting it rising out of the darkness ablaze with light pouring from knots in the stump and sighed with relief. There is was, and there was still plenty of time before the moon sank into the sky to welcome the dawn of a new day. All she had to do was wait for Adrien. But then the noises of cries for help reached her ears, along with triumphant, diabolical laughter. Nathalie dropped down and hid, pressing her back against a bramble bush and wincing a bit as the thorns dug into her skin and her wings. The cries for help persisted as two Goblins on dragonflies flew past, pushing a sentient fungus into a sack. The entrance, Nathalie saw, was filled with a line of creatures flanked by guards. Just as Nathalie wondered what they could have done to invoke the ire of Hawkmoth two of them began to kiss, only to be broken apart by the guards. An affirmed, “No kissing!” directed their way.

The love potion. Nathalie knew Adrien no longer had it, which meant someone else did and was spreading it around the kingdoms. And Hawkmoth was going to do something with them. What did that mean for Marinette, who’d been dusted before she was brought here? Logically, Nathalie knew she should wait for Adrien to arrive with the love potion before she entered but concern for her sister drove her actions.

“Nathalie?” Tikki wondered aloud, “What are you doing?”

“Tikki,” Nathalie replied, “Stay here and wait for Adrien and the others. I can’t let anything happen to Marinette. I’m going in,”

“No, Nathalie!” Tikki tugged at a lock of hair, “You need to wait!”

“I can’t wait.” Nathalie argued, “Do you see those people? They’re going to be punished for being love-dusted by that damned potion! I can’t even imagine what Hawkmoth will do if he finds out the same thing has happened to Marinette.”

“We won’t get her back any sooner if we go in there without the potion!” Tikki parried.

Nathalie pulled out of the brambles and took off.

“Nathalie wait!” Tikki shot off after her.

MLB

It was quite late in the evening, even for Goblins. It made sense that several of the posted guards he had standing near him were asleep on their feet. The day had been exhaustive. Hawkmoth merely sat there, chin in hand as he mulled over his thoughts. The prisoners had been escorted to the dungeons and locked up for their own safety. By all accounts, the love potion’s effects were permanent unless someone died, or was administered the antidote. He wasn’t going to kill anyone for falling in love against their will, that was the mark of a bad king. And Rose steadfastly refused to give him the antidote. Still, the audible snoring of one of his subjects as they stood right next to him was getting a little annoying.

“Shush him,” Trixx elbowed Plagg.

“You shush him,” Plagg argued back.

“You’re closer!”

“I guess,” Plagg huffed. He turned to the sleeping guard and shushed him. Unfortunately it startled the guard awake and jerked his staff into the king’s sending it tipping to the side. Hawkmoth caught it without raising his head.

Righting the staff he said to the others, “So… why don’t you all get some sleep, and leave me alone.”

The guards dispersed at that. Meanwhile Plagg and Trixx argued over the correct pronunciation of boutonniere -whether the bou should be pronounced boot or but- and made Hawkmoth realized he was still wearing the accursed present the fairy princess had given him. With an angry sound he snatched the decoration off and threw it to the ground. Heavens above help him get through the remainder of this night. He turned his eyes to the skylight in the ceiling of the castle to look at the position of the moon. And that was when he noticed a dark spot, with an even smaller red one, growing larger and larger with every passing second. Nearly belatedly Hawkmoth realized that something was coming, and in the nick of time he grabbed his staff and held it up to deflect an attack.

With a primal scream Nathalie crashed through the skylight, sword drawn and arced downward. It resounded off Hawkmoth’s staff with a clang that reverberated through both their bodies. Nathalie still had the upper hand, using her wings to keep her slightly aloft as opposed to Hawkmoth who was sitting in his throne. Tikki zipped off to the side, not wanting to get caught in whatever would ensue. The noise called back Trixx and Plagg who eyes the Sprite warily.

“What’s going on?” Plagg asked her.

“Nathalie is… impatient,” Tikki whispered in response.

Speaking of, Nathalie gritted her teeth at Hawkmoth and snarled, “Release my sister!”

And now he recognized her. Just what he needed another Fairy Princess causing trouble. All he wanted was the potion back. But things could never be that simple now could they?

“Oh wonderful,” he snarled back, “Another princess.” at least this one wasn’t singing.

She drew back with her sword and swung at him again. The bout began. Thrusts, parries, ripostes, lunges, blocks. With their wings the combat extended to the air. The clangs resounded off their weapons as they fought. Hawkmoth was impressed as the slip of a Fairy woman threw her strength into her blows, as skilled as any warrior he’d ever seen. He hung on to the support for one of the many lanterns that lit the castle’s interior. With one clean swipe of her sword Nathalie cut it loose, sending it to the floor below. Unbeknownst to them the tremor of the chandelier hitting the ground reverberated down in the dungeon below, causing Marinette to stir. The guards watching over her immediately tried to quiet her, lest she start singing again. It worked, and they heaved a sigh of relief. Back up above the three companions to the royals watched the fight go on, and on, and on.

“Ask if he needs help,” Trixx goaded Plagg, “He’ll appreciate it.”

“Wait,” Tikki zipped forward and covered the Goblin’s mouth with her hands, “I think they’re fine for right now. If they need help they’ll tell us.”

Plagg blinked at the Sprite slowly. Tikki immediately realized the position of her hands and pulled away quickly, thankful that her red complexion kept her from blushing easily. A glance back over at the cat-goblin showed him looking at her intently. When he caught her eyes a fanged smirk was sent at her. Tikki stubbornly turned her gaze away.

The two collided in the air and Nathalie blew a stray lock of hair out of her face. With a smirk she asked him, “Had enough?”

He scoffed, “Please, I could do this all day.” they swung their weapons only to collide again, “Now, if you’re here then give me the potion.”

“What?” Nathalie quirked a brow, “The almighty King Hawkmoth needs a magic love potion? What could you possibly think is out of your league?”

“Point one: I love no one, which leads me into point two: I don’t need it, I want to eradicate it!”

“Really? Well,” Nathalie tilted her head to the side, propelling herself backwards and hacking off a loose piece of the castle, sending it in his direction, “Eradicate this!”

Hawkmoth just managed to dodge and the giant woodchip fell to the floor. They landed atop it and continued to fight. Trixx, Tikki, and Plagg cowered behind one side of it, with Trixx egging Plagg on to ask if their sovereign needed help. Though Tikki whispered not to the cat did and got yelled at in return as Hawkmoth was distracted by the heat of the battle and didn’t want to be caught off guard because he was dealing with his subjects. The clangs and clashes continued to resound off the cavernous walls. Unfortunately Nathalie’s sword got caught in the top of Hawkmoth’s staff, and pulling it out proved rather difficult. Nathalie grunted in frustration and Hawkmoth took the opportunity to egg her.

“Well well,” he smirked, “Look at you,”

Nathalie glared at him then wrenched her arms in the other direction as quickly as she could. The action dislodged the sword, only to send it flying into the air. Nathalie and Hawkmoth looked at each other awkwardly for a moment, neither knowing what the next move should be. Then Nathalie grabbed hold of the staff, used it to pull him forward close enough to deliver a kick to his chest, then using the momentum of his retuned swing to flip over, moving to the side just in time to catch her weapon by the hilt. She was a better fighter than anyone might have given her credit for, he would give her that.

“Not bad,” he said, “Not bad at all.”

She responded by aiming the point of it at his throat. They continued fighting, their footwork as fancy as a high class dance. They spun without getting dizzy, always ending the tiny fray with their weapons pressed against each other. And surprisingly enough, there was laughter. A teasing, triumphant breath of laughter that escaped them when they believed themselves to have the upper hand or to have countered what their opponent thought an exemplary move. And before they knew it, it was turning into real laughter as Nathalie used her wings to power jump out of the way.

“So?” Nathalie managed to get out through her chortles, pointing a flippant hand down at him like he was supposed to kiss it and grovel, “Is that all you got?”

Just to show off, Hawkmoth began twirling his weapon like a baton, using the momentum to force her into defending. All the while spouting off colloquialisms about knowing how to play his hand and the cards that had been dealt him.

“Really?” Nathalie quipped, holding her sword above her head, the moonlight glinting off the cold metal, “Well I’m ready for you.”

Hawkmoth tutted, moving to the side and forcing them into circling each other, “What the winner doesn’t know, the gambler understands.”

Nathalie loosened her framework enough to shrug in confusion, “What does that even mean?” when he merely smirked in response she shook her head. It didn’t matter, “No, you don’t stand a chance!”

“You don’t stand a chance,” Hawkmoth agreed.

As though the taunting had put more energy into her, Nathalie slashed and hacked, his staff being the only thing that protected him from the bite of her blade. She growled fiercely at him, her frustration and exhaustion becoming more and more apparent, even though she didn’t want them to. Hawkmoth couldn’t resist.

“Ooh,” he said, the tone mocking and dripping with faux awe. The same tone used with the sarcastic phrase “I’m so scared,” when the speaker wasn’t in the slightest. He forced her back and swung at her again, “You fight well, for a Fairy that is.”

“Really?” Nathalie replied with mock surprise and graciousness, “Wish I would say the same for you.”

“And what do you mean by that?” he snarled at her, parrying a blow in an almost distracted manner.

“I don’t know,” Nathalie parried a few more strikes without even looking at him, instead taking the opportunity to closely examine her nails, “I guess I was just expecting…” she forced back his hand and drew close enough to taunt him, “ more ?”

There came the muffled sounds of laughter as his subjects, as well as her Sprite, tried to stifle their mirth. If there was one thing he hated above all else, it was being ridiculed. Incensed he struck back at her, began trying to drive her into a corner. They went into the air once more, each of them taking shots at one another. So wrapped up they didn’t notice Dowager Duusu coming in and seeing the fervor with which they fought. A fire she hadn’t seen in her son in almost two decades.

With a maternal sigh of relief Duusu whispered, “Finally!”

But considering they had spent a good portion of time and energy fighting it was only natural that even adrenaline would give out. To the point where their swings were lazy, half-hearted, and not at all near their marks. Fatigue forced them to the ground, only leaving them on their feet through sheer determination not to look weak in front of the other.

They stood, locked in a combative position and panting heavily. The toll of the fight now taken out on their bodies. With shaking hands Nathalie raised her sword, its tip once again ready to pierce the dark ruler’s flesh. He smirked at her.

“Go ahead,” he told her, “Kill me, but you won’t get your sister back if you do.”

She glared at him and with even more trembling allowed the weapon’s edge to drop to the ground with a soft clang. Tikki and Plagg took that opportunity to cut in and gently ask,

“Need any help?”

In simultaneous exhaustion the other pair replied, “No,”

And then it came through in the rather disturbing quiet. The sound of sweet singing, tinged with melancholy. Soft and wistful, like it was sung by someone on the outside looking in. Trixx and Plagg covered their ears with their paws, meanwhile Tikki floated upward tilting her head to the side.

“Marinette!” she exclaimed happily.

“Oh no,” Hawkmoth shuddered in revulsion, “The beast has awoken!”

“Oh dear,” Nathalie looked around, as if she could find the answer before asking the question, “ What did she fall in love with?”

Hawkmoth scoffed and set his staff down against the giant woodchip, “Care to find out?” with a hand he gestured that she should follow him. Silently Nathalie acquiesced, though she did take note of the staff and carefully tucked her sword back against her side. Tikki and the others followed after them.

MLB

Unlike when Adrien had visited the dungeon cells were full of lovelorn creatures singing their hearts out. Reaching for their beloveds, on the brink of tears. Nathalie took all this in with a face that grew more and more pained and horrified as she saw the true uncontrollable effects of the potion on these poor creatures. Hawkmoth didn’t make it any easier with his commentary,

“See what happens when love is loosed upon the world?” he asked her, “This is why I made the potion illegal, and suggested your kingdom do the same. If the Rosa Peace Fairy didn’t prefer my dark hollows, I can’t say you wouldn’t have been under its power already.”

Nathalie wrapped her arms around herself and shuddered. To think that Adrien had been conned into a very similar plot. Not that it mattered, knowing Sebastian her father had already given into his demands and was in the process of gathering an army. It wasn’t a threat. There weren’t enough trained soldiers for anything more than a small battalion, and given that the last war between their kingdoms had been hundreds of years ago there was no chance that they would be victorious in the case of an invasion.

Trixx and Plagg stood at attention, the latter trying to quiet everyone’s discordant voices so that there could be peace. But even his loudest cries couldn’t be heard over the layer upon layer of voices. The sound started to pierce at an uncomfortable pitch, causing Nathalie to grab at her ears and wince. Noticing this Hawkmoth shouted for everyone to be quiet. They silenced at the forboding monarch’s orders.

Clearing his throat and dusting off his hands Hawkmoth glanced at Nathalie as he grasped the handles of Marinette’s cell doors, “I hope you’ve got a strong stomach,” he warned her.

“I can only imagine,” Nathalie quipped without really meaning to, rolling her eyes in an unimpressed manner. Whatever she’d fallen for, Marinette was still her sister. It couldn’t be that bad… right?

Hawkmoth opened the doors to be blasted with Marinette’s singing. He wrinkled his nose in disgust and looked away while Nathalie stared slackjawed. Just as quickly as he’d opened the doors they were shut. But Nathalie didn’t quite get it just yet. She stared at him and lifted her hands as though to say, “What?”. Pushing him to the side she opened the doors herself while he took a rather prudent step back. The doors were opened again. Standing right in front of her Nathalie could see where her sibling’s adoring gaze landed. Slamming the doors shut once more she whirled on him, disbelief written all over her face.

“You?” she asked. No way, it was impossible. This had to be a joke.

Clearing his throat he replied, “Yes,” as he tapped his fingers together.

“Antidote?” she parried.

“Still working on that part,” he replied with a placating motion.

Nathalie rolled her eyes and withdrew her sword. Now only just remembering he’d abandoned his weapon -rather foolishly- Hawkmoth held up his hands and stepped back. Without taking her eyes off him Nathalie opened the doors to Marinette’s cell, lifted the gate and then took out the rather loopy looking girl. Tikki floated back, unsure that this would go as smoothly as the other was hoping.

With a soft breathy gasp Marinette greeted her sibling as though she hadn’t just seen her, “Nath! Hi!”

And then like she was fascinated her fingers began to brush against her sister’s face, poking at sockets and divots and even going so far as to cover her mouth while Nathalie moved them along.

“Well, you know,” Nathalie managed to get out as she continued walking them along, sword still pointed at the opposing royal, “I really-” she had to stop to blow Marinette’s fingers off her mouth, “enjoyed our fight. But I think I’ll be taking my sister home now.”

Another gasp, this one of outrage, came from the younger girl. She pushed her sister, causing Nathalie’s sword to drop and skitter. With practiced ease Hawkmoth transferred the weapon from the ground to his hand and pointed it at the interloper. With a cry of “Mothy-pie!” Marinette threw herself at him, arms encircling tightly about his waist.

“Hawkmoth,” he corrected, dropping the sword with a victorious smirk. No way she would fight with her sister at risk of getting hurt. True to his thought process Nathalie merely sighed helplessly but did nothing. Turning to the younger princess he took on a softer, more encouraging, and utterly fake tone, “Now, let’s go back to our cell, shall we?”

With a girlish giggle Marinette nodded, “Anything for you Mothy-wothy,” she pinched his cheeks and sauntered back to her cell, ignoring his correction of “Hawkmoth,”.

“Marinette!” Nathalie sounded exasperated as she grabbed the other girl by the shoulders, “What’s wrong with you? Don’t listen to him!”

An annoyed expression on her face Marinette pushed herself out of Nathalie’s grip and flared her wings, “You are not the boss of me!” she argued, “And don’t even think about stealing my Mothy!”

“Hawkmoth!” the king snarled. The doors slammed with finality as Marinette returned to the cell. Nathalie sighed, she didn’t know what to do now. Marinette was stubborn when she wanted something, and it was torture to try and persuade her out of it. Add that in to the effect of the potion and there was going to be no convincing her of anything else.

“You know,” Hawkmoth began lightly, “She stays here until I get the potion back. After that you can have her.”

Ah yes, the infamous potion which had caused all this trouble. Her ire renewed Nathalie turned on him and wanted to scream, but she settled for forceful talking, “Potion? Forget the potion, get the antidote! Now!”

Hawkmoth scoffed, “You make it sound so easy.”

“Isn’t it?”

“Well then,” he shrugged as if none of this concerned him, “Maybe you’d like to ask her then.”

“Ask who?” Nathalie replied.

“The Rosa Peace Fairy,” Hawkmoth introduced as he escorted her to the cell beneath the ground.

At the sound of her name Rose turned to see she now had visitors, “Welcome!” she greeted, “It’s so nice to see some new faces around here. Are you his new beau? How romantic!”

“Wait what?” Nathalie shook her head in disbelief.

“Oh, you’re not?” Rose put a hand to her mouth and giggled sweetly, “My mistake, sorry.”

“Give me the antidote,” Hawkmoth ordered her.

“Only if you let me talk about that fateful-”

“No!” Hawkmoth replied firmly.

“Well I guess you don’t need it that badly then,” Rose shrugged and turned away, crossing her arms in the process.

Nathalie looked at Hawkmoth, who shrugged and gestured for her to try. The Fairy took a deep breath, “Please Rosa-”

“Rose dear,” she corrected, “Rose.”

“Alright, Rose. Please, help us. I love my sister, and seeing her like this kills me. I need that antidote.”

Rose turned to her and clasped her hands together under her chin, “Oh I just adore love like that!” she sighed, “Okay, I’ll help.”

“What?” Hawkmoth said in disbelief while Nathalie smiled and asked, “You will?”

“Mhm,” Rose nodded, “I’ll just need a few things first…” she started listing off items and Hawkmoth ordered the guard to get them.

They began walking away, unsure of what to do with their time now that all that was needed was to wait for the antidote to be made. Despite Rose’s reassurance Nathalie was still wary.

“Hey,” she thumped her arm against him, feeling the bite of his scales against her arm, “Do you think it’ll really work?”

“Eh, who knows,” a new voice cut in, causing Nathalie to jump. Duusu had followed them down and was smiling charmingly at the girl. Hawkmoth looked to the sky as if asking “why me?”

“Uh,” Nathalie replied, all semblance of royal etiquette deserting her, “And you would be?”

Hawkmoth hunched down into his body, “My mother,”

“Step-mother, technically,” Duusu said, “Though I did raise him like my own.”

“I see,” Nathalie nodded, “You’re the Queen of the Dark Forest then?”

“Dowager,” Duusu amended, “Dowager Duusu, though Duusu is just fine,” she grabbed hold of Nathalie’s hands and pulled the Fairy woman down to eye level, “And you must be little Nathalie. Look at you all grown up! Why I haven’t seen you since the last Spring Ball all those years ago!”

“I mean, you really missed out this year,” Nathalie replied with an awkward laugh.

“Mhm,” Duusu nodded. Leaning in she whispered, “But honey, what happened to your hair? Did you lose your comb?”

“It’s the wind from flying so fast,” Nathalie replied as she stood back up, pulling out of the dowager’s grip, “It happens so often I just gave up.”

“Nothing wrong with getting a bit of wind in your hair,” Duusu agreed, “Now, don’t tell me my Gabe has been so hospitable as to drag you down to the dungeons without offering any refreshments.”

That caused Nathalie to snort, putting a fist in front of her mouth to try and stifle her mirth, “I’m sorry,” her voice warbled with her unshed laughter, “ Gabe ?”

“Gabriel,” Duusu waved a hand at Hawkmoth, “That’s his name. But in a place like this I’m sure you can understand why he doesn’t use it much.”

“Most definitely,” Nathalie agreed.

“Anywho…” Duusu waved it off, “It’s so drafty down here, don’t you think? Why don’t you two come upstairs? I had snacks prepared while you wait.”

“I’d love to,” Nathalie replied, “But I don’t know… What do you think, Gabriel ?”

There was a strangled sound of frustration that echoed out from deep within his chest. Closing his eyes Hawkmoth breathed in through his nose. It was almost over, the antidote would be ready soon. He could play the cordial host for that long.

“Why not?” he parried. After all, it had only been five minutes they’d been down here. What was the worst that could happen?

Hawkmoth had apparently forgotten just who his mother was and what she was like.

Chapter Text

After the rather embarrassing incident with his steed tripping him up in front of his army Sebastian had sent his three trusted minions out further ahead. Soon enough the army caught up to a skirmish in a small clearing, in which Adrien was taking on his men all at once, and his men were losing. In the darkness Adrien’s green eyes glinted like some unholy beast, definitely not something from the Fields. The cretin was always an outcast for his size, but now they had a reason to fear him, and that made him more of a threat. Not too much though, since Sebastian was still in better social standing with all the present witnesses.

A shrill whistle had a net thrown over to the skirmishing group and the three lesser knights captured Adrien in it, making sure to relieve him of the love potion in the process. It was handed back to Sebastian who smirked smugly at it and then at Adrien.

“Well, well, well,” he drawled, “And just what are you doin’ here?” Sebastian sneered.

“I don’t know if you were too busy being self-absorbed to listen,” Adrien hissed back as he tugged at the net closed around him, “But Nathalie asked me to get the love potion.”

“Really?” Sebastian quirked a brow, “I’m surprised she would ask you to do such a thing, considering who’s fault this whole thing is.”

“I didn’t the potion solely for myself,” Adrien argued, “I got it for-”

“Marinette,” Sebastian was quick to cut in, “You got it for Princess Marinette. And honestly, I can’t say I’m surprised why you would want it that badly. I mean, why would she ever think twice about someone like you, when she has the whole of the Fairy Kingdom to choose from?”

The group laughed at the pathetic Elf, the outsider who dared to think he could be worthy of the princess’ love. Ire bubbled under Adrien’s skin and he itched to lash out, tear everyone who mocked him to shreds. Normally such animosity would have surprised and frightened him, but it was like the forest was awakening a dark side that had been hidden just under the surface, and Adrien wanted to embrace it.

“I could say the same of Nathalie with you,” Adrien growled, still pulling at the net, “I mean, you tout being the most charming Fairy in the Kingdom, irresistible, and yet not only did Nathalie dump you, she refuses to take you back! That’s gotta sting, doesn’t it?”

“Nathalie’s always been a little over emotional,” Sebastian parried, “It’s a phase, she may be stubborn but I’ll win her over eventually. Not that my relationship with her is any of your business.”

“Really?” Adrien quirked a brow, “Because Nathalie isn’t known for flying off the handle. Whatever you did to her, it must have been absolutely unforgivable . That’s why you convinced me to get the love potion for you! Because you couldn’t do it on your own.”

There was a hushed silence that fell over the group, even as the sounds of the forest continued through the evening. Hurling an accusation like that at Sebastian was quite a gutsy thing to do. But the Elf had only his own word against the knight’s. But though it wasn’t enough to convince them, it was enough to plant a seed of doubt. Adrien might have been closer to Princess Marinette, but he definitely knew more about Nathalie than anyone else outside the royal family. She would never have cancelled an engagement, not on the day of the wedding, not if she had gotten cold feet. She knew how much the marriage would have meant to everyone and merely postponed it, and even then it likely would have still happened with only a few hours for delay.

Not to mention she refused to speak to anyone as to the cause of her decision. If it had been something as simple as cold feet then she would have said so. Which meant that Adrien had a point, whatever had happened between the crown princess and her former fiance had to have been very bad to make her call it off. Which meant perhaps the golden knight of the Fairy Guard wasn’t so golden after all.

The whispers of confusion and dissent ran rampant through the gathered crowd. Furtive looks went back and forth between the outcast and the idol. One of them had to be lying, though who it was they couldn’t tell for sure. Adrien had, at Nathalie’s request, gone to retrieve the love potion and succeeded. What had Sebastian done besides call for an army to be assembled and then march them through a forest whose layout he seemed to have no knowledge of?

“Please,” Sebastian rebuffed, “I am capable of anything, and I am capable of it all on my own.”

“So that’s why you marched an army in here?” Adrien countered, “That’s why you sent me to do your dirty work? Admit it Sebastian, without others to manipulate, you’re nothing!”

“Well, well done anyways,” after another terse pause Sebastian brushed the insult off like it didn’t bother him. Though if one was able to look into his eyes they would be able to see the fury quietly resting there, “But we do have a deadline to meet and a potion to return. I think I better hold onto this to, ah, keep it safe,” he tucked the potion bottle in his belt and laughed, “And as for you, my traitorous little friend, we’ll have you brought before the leader of this accursed place. After all, the love potion was illegally made on his grounds, I’m sure he’ll want to deal with you himself.” Sebastian tugged at Hopper’s reins and shouted, “Forward, march!” the army continued on, with Adrien being dragged across the ground alongside them.

From the shadows Nooroo, Pollen, and the Imp watched. This wasn’t good. The army was going to approach the castle with the love potion, and Nathalie had gone after Marinette. There was no telling what could happen.

“We need to get to the castle,” Pollen said, “And fast. We have to warn them, if that idiot approaches the people of the Dark Forest with an army it’ll be as good as declaring all out war!”

“But how are we supposed to get there?” Nooroo parried, “We don’t know the way, we’ve never been here before!”

Tiny chittering noises caught their attention. The Imp waved her hands to catch their eyes and started to communicate.

“What is it?” Nooroo asked, “Oh, your name’s Lila? And you know the way to the castle?”

Lila nodded and scampered off. Pollen and Nooroo zipped along behind. They needed to get to the castle, and they hoped it wouldn’t be too late.

MLB

Duusu had explained along the way that it was easiest to set up food in the dining hall. It had been a long night for everyone involved and some nourishment of any type was greatly appreciated. Of course, that had been before the pair had seen what Duusu had done with the place. Everywhere they looked the room was covered in the color red and heart-shaped decorations. Candelabras were set and a roaring fire was burning in the hearth. Gabriel and Nathalie’s mouths dropped open in shock, compounded by the sound of Nathalie’s sword clattering to the ground.

Duusu looked altogether too pleased with herself, “It’s the best I could do on such short notice,” she smiled and assumed a posture of total innocence even as she admitted to her culpability. Gabriel and Nathalie looked back at her and she took a more matronly stance, wagging a finger at them as she added, “You two behave now, you hear?” and then with a wiggle of her fingers she wandered off.

Plagg, Trixx, and Tikki, who had apparently been sent to do the dowager’s bidding, were standing nearby. Their expressions were an odd mixture of hopefulness and discomfort as they tried to help add to the mood. But a glare from Hawkmoth sent them shrinking back, elbowing each other to keep silent and in line.

Inclining a head over his shoulder he ordered them, “Go see if the antidote’s ready,”

“Roger sir,” Trixx saluted as she scampered ahead. Plagg stood there a moment more with Tikki, torn between wanting to go and wanting to stay.

“Tikki, you too,” Nathalie added. With a nod the Sprite started to drift away.

Plagg followed after her, dropping something on the table as they followed after the fox and saying, “I found your boutonniere!” Tikki giggled as she took him by the hand and lifted him into the air, taking care to get them out of harm’s way as quickly as possible.

Now alone Gabriel and Nathalie examined the decor under closer scrutiny. For whatever reason, he was confused. What had happened to his dining room? More importantly, what had happened that would make his mother do this?

“Why would she..?” he mused, poking at a heart decoration right above their heads. When he caught sight of Nathalie in view of the heart it became all too clear. A setup, it was another setup. The only problem was that he had respect for her as a warrior. It took guts to come crashing through his skylight and attack him directly. It took skill to hold her own in battle against him. So this… this was awkward to say the least. Quickly they looked away from each other, posture protective and embarrassed.

Trying to cut through the tension Nathalie ran a hand through her already messy locks and said, “I mean, who likes this stuff anyways?”

“Not me,” he was quick to assure her.

“I hate it,” Nathalie declared.

“I hate it more,”

“Oh really?” she raised a sardonic brow and pulled at the decoration, breaking it loose and ripping it in half as she added, “People like this, they’re all fools.”

He had to smirk at that, “Most definitely rushing in,”

“Maybe it’s the season,” Nathalie postulated, “Since they “can’t help it”,” she put her hands to her face and pitched her voice higher to sound like some love-obsessed teenage girl.

“And it puts them in chains,” to emphasize his point Gabriel pulled at a strand made out of leaves, the others fell over Nathalie as she walked further into the room.

“Chains,” she agreed, struggling to shrug them off, “That bind you,” she ripped through one and started plucking it apart link by link. Hawkmoth did the same.

Unfortunately, they began walking as they did so and weren’t paying attention to where they were going. They bumped into each other and seemed more acutely aware of each other, and not in a comfortable way. They pushed away and seemed at a loss. Spotting a darkened lantern on the floor Hawkmoth kicked it while asking, “What’s the point?”

“Makes me sick,” Nathalie agreed as she stepped on another lantern, “Though it’s gratifying to see what happens soon after. All lonely and broken-hearted and weak…”

“For relying entirely on someone else?” they shared a laugh as Gabriel picked up another heart shaped decoration, “That’s what they get,”

A well-aimed knife took it out of his hand and planted it against the wall on top of another heart. Nathalie held another knife in her hand as she picked up, “Lies, lies, and oh, what’s this? More lies !” the last word was punctuated with the throw of the other knife in the same direction.

“Not to mention pain,” he gathered up a handful of the chain links and hearts and threw them into the fire, watching with cold satisfaction as he watched them be consumed by the blaze.

“How about sorrow?” Nathalie asked as she grabbed the item Marinette had made for him, regarded it for a moment before dropping to the ground and and crushing it underfoot, grinding it into the ground with her heel.

“Wait,” Hawkmoth stopped her, moving her foot out of the way and picking it up. It was less beautiful than it had first been, but it was still passable as a decoration, “I… uh… I think I actually like this one.”

“Really?” Nathalie looked at it, “Might I ask why?”

“I could tell you that it’s because it’s well constructed but…” they looked at the damage that had been done to it, “The truth is… I don’t know why I like it.”

“Wait…” Nathalie looked closer at it as he placed it back on his body, “Did my sister make that?”

“Yes,”

“Well, at least the potion hasn’t dulled her creative ability…” Nathalie chuckled mirthlessly, “She’s always been making things, made a couple of my clothes too. That, that’s nothing. But she wouldn’t put all that effort in for just anyone, potion or not.”

“I’m not sure how I’m supposed to take that,”

“You’ve been treating her relatively well…” Nathalie reasoned, “I think she likes you.”

“I could tell by the constant singing and touching.”

“I mean, she thinks highly of you. As a person.” a leaf fell off the boutonniere and fell to the ground, echoing loudly in the awkward silence that ensued. Nathalie cleared her throat, “I mean, for what it’s worth it’s… it’s ah…” she suddenly didn’t know what to do with her hands and they were gesticulating in an awkward manner, evident of her emotions, “lovely,” the word rolled off her tongue about as easily as it had his. Hawkmoth closed his eyes and allowed a small smile at the parallel.

Sounds echoed elsewhere, drawing their attention. Trixx and the others had returned, Plagg carrying Rose’s prison and Tikki hovering around him in case he needed help.

“Antidote’s ready sire!” Trixx reported.

Instantly Hawkmoth grabbed the prison out of Plagg’s hands and checked the cell for it. In the process he shook Rose hard enough to send her spinning, “Well? Where it it?”

Rose giggled, “It’s a riddle!” she declared.

“Riddle?” Nathalie was incredulous. So was the ruler of the Dark Forest.

“Then what did you need all that stuff for?” he demanded.

“Well, I think you would agree it’s hard to get things while in prison, wouldn’t you?” Rose raised a sparkling brow at him, “Now, do you want to hear the riddle or not?”

One of them said yes, the other no. it was obvious which one Rose listened to. With a drumroll for effect she floated up so that they could see her clearly.

“The antidote is the one thing more powerful than the potion!” she informed them.

The prison was set down as the pair took on thinking postures. It wasn’t very helpful as no answer seemed obvious. But then, the answers to riddles never did. And to Nathalie, a riddle was just another form of a lie. A lie that told the truth, but a lie all the same. And Nathalie hated lies.

A simultaneous growl of frustration escaped them as they exclaimed, “I hate riddles!” before falling back to thinking.

MLB

The army continued to march on. With nothing to do but enjoy the ride, uncomfortable as it was Adrien took a look at the moon as it continued to sink into the sky. He wanted to bust out, but the ropes and knots that made up the net were too strong for him to simply break, and his fingers weren’t nimble enough to undo anything and allow him escape.

Pollen and Nooroo were following Lila through the forest, but the Imp was keeping pace with the group they were trying to beat. She brought them to a simple looking toadstool and looked between it and them. The Sprites were confused. Lila pushed up the cap to reveal a face on the fungus. Making chittering noises she pointed from them to it and back again.

“What are we supposed to do?” Pollen whispered to Nooroo.

“I don’t know,” Nooroo whispered back. The mushroom began to whisper to another one nearby and the message seemed to carry.

“Wait, are they like messengers?” Pollen asked Lila. The Imp nodded. Pollen buzzed closer and told them, “An army approaches, pass it on!”

The mushroom nodded and started the whisper chain again. With their message heading to the castle ahead of them Lila gestured for them to return closer to the marching ranks and look for something.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Nooroo asked. Lila chittered and pointed to the captive in the net. They assumed she meant they needed to free Adrien and silently floated closer, trying to stay hidden from sight. When Adrien spotted them he opened his mouth to say something but a gesture from them kept him silent. They slipped closer, one set to untying the knots in the net while the other kept watch. quick as can be the net came loose and Adrien looked for a suitable opening. When it came he ducked out into the brush and heaved a sigh of relief.

“Thanks you guys,” he told the three, “Now, let’s go get Marinette.” he wasn’t worried about the king. Nathalie was likely already there, and Adrien knew she could handle herself.

MLB

“Something more powerful than the potion,” Nathalie repeated under her breath.

“That’s what I said,” Rose agreed, reclining on air. The two had been at this for a good chunk of time now and were no closer to figuring it it out. She was starting to get bored as the fire smouldered on its embers.

“Sire!” Plagg and Tikki came in, the former being the one speaking, “News from the mushrooms! An armtree’s encroaches, mass dijon!”

Nathalie tilted her head at the absolute gibberish that had come out of the Goblin’s mouth, meanwhile Hawkmoth simply glared at the interruption.

Plagg shared a look with the red Sprite before bowing out on the words, “Carry on!”

Gabriel was about to repeat the last part of the riddle for the nth time when Rose couldn’t take it anymore.

“I’m bored!” she exclaimed, “Would you like me to just tell you the answer?”

“Yes,” the two replied in unison.

“Alright,” Rose agreed, “If you set me free,” she added.

“No!” was the king’s instant response, but a look from Nathalie -desperate to have Marinette freed- turned it into a, “Noo-ookay.”

“Yay!” Rose squeed in happiness, “Then I shall reveal the antidote, using a story!”

“What?” Hawkmoth said, “No!”

Nathalie was too happy she was going to get the answer she sought to care, or question why he was so against it.

“One fateful day,” Rose began, using her magic to transform into a miniature version of Hawkmoth. The original tried to crush the fairy before she could continue but Nathalie snatched the magic sac away, “When Hawkmoth was but a young and impetuous princeling, he fell in love!” she squeed with happiness, “With a sweet young thing! A little Elfling girl,” Rose transformed into a young Elf woman who -even by Elf standards- was not that attractive.

Nathalie raised a brow, but Hawkmoth looked absolutely smitten even though he knew she was just an illusion, “She was the most beautiful creature I’d ever seen in my life.”

“Seriously?” Nathalie couldn’t help but retorting, even discounting Sebastian Nathalie could name at least ten beings more attractive than the Elf woman just off the top of her head, and most of them weren’t even Fairies either. Though, Nathalie had to admit, she looked vaguely familiar somehow.

Rose nodded knowingly, “He was so in love but, he had no patience. All his attempts to woo her involved doing so from afar. Flooding the girl with gifts he won her affections, but she had never before seen his face. Still, perhaps it was the impetuousness of youth, Gabriel wouldn’t let her see him before he had embraced her. And even after that he was nervous, because her laying with him entitled her to some warranted curiosity. She kept pushing to see him without the cover of darkness…”

“Enough!” Hawkmoth ordered, trying to snatch the prison away, and yet not since he didn’t seem to be making that much of an effort while Nathalie kept it out of his reach

“So he came to me for my love potion, I tried to tell him how it worked…” Rose explained as she held up a false illusion of the potion which had caused all the problems in the first place. With an angry growl Hawkmoth lunged for the staff a third time. “But he took off before I could. Trying to keep him from doing something foolish I followed after him to see him waiting in the shadows for his Ladylove. She looked happy, and so excited to tell him,”

“Tell him?” Nathalie repeated. Hawkmoth looked confused,

“Tell me what?” he demanded.

“Oops,” Rose giggled, “That’s not so important right now,” she waved off the slip up, “Anyways, she trusted him enough to close her eyes, and he dusted the sweet unsuspecting creature…”

“Rose no!” Hawkmoth shouted, “I beg you, stop now!” it had to be bad if he was begging. He begged no one.

“He stepped forth from the shadows and gazed into her eyes, utterly lovesick….” the apparition of the Elf woman suddenly looked frightened beyond all reason and let out a high-pitched horrified scream.

Suddenly he looked defeated, “What does it matter?” he asked with a self-deprecating smile, “Even with a love potion, I suppose some things are too hideous to love.”

“You-” Nathalie started, stopping a moment to set Rose’s prison down. She wanted to say that it couldn’t be a matter of looks, because Marinette had fallen for him under the effects of the potion. But then again, Marinette had always believed that it was someone’s personality that counted more than their looks. Though the potion kind of counteracted that mindset didn’t it? But it wasn’t as if he was a bad guy, no more so than anyone who ruled over a horde of Goblins that believed strength and ruthlessness was the key to a good king. It was all what Nathalie wanted to say, but instead all that came out was, “You’re not hideous,” she finished quietly.

“Aren’t I though?” he asked, “I’m not like anything in this world. Not a Fairy, not a Goblin, not anything. I don’t belong, I am alone, is nothing more hideous than that?”

There was a moment of silence and understanding between the two before Rose chimed in, “Hideous, not hideous. Doesn’t really matter actually. Because that’s not why the potion didn’t work.”

“What?” the two asked simultaneously, returning to the trapped sorceress.

“It didn’t work because she already loved someone else!” Rose threw her hands up in the air.

“So the antidote to this whole thing, it’s real love?” Nathalie questioned.

“Pure, unadulterated, self-sacrificing love,” Rose clarified, “And the one she loved more than anything, was the child she carried within her, your child Gabriel.”

“My what?” Hawkmoth repeated dumbly. A child, his beloved had had a child. She’d run from him because she likely though that he would… and then the anger set in, “Why didn’t you tell me!”

“You found me, you shut me away, and you shut me up!” Rose accused, sweet nature all but vanishing as she hurled the completely true accusations at him, “And yet Dowager Duusu still blames me for your whole ‘no love in the Dark Forest’!”

Meanwhile Nathalie’s thoughts were racing. There had been stories swirling about when she had been ten years old. Rumors that an Elf-woman had nearly been captured by the King of the Dark Forest. And then, a few years after Marinette had shown up on their doorstep, so too did Adrien. He’d been introduced as a friend Marinette had made while out in the Fields. And after that they were nearly inseparable. Of course, in the vein of all tiny things they got into a good deal of messy situations, ones that usually ended with injury and dirty clothes. One particular incident had shown something Nathalie had thought odd at the time but merely brushed off as a familial quirk. Adrien had four little stumps on his back. When Nathalie had questioned him about it he’d said he’d had them all his life, but didn’t know why they were there. Only that his grandparents hated seeing them more than anything else. And considering how poorly they treated their grandson that had been saying something.

So lost in her thoughts was she Nathalie nearly missed Gabriel’s orders to take Rose away.

“Wait!” she called out, stealing Rose’s prison away from them, needing answers, “How long ago was this?”

Rose put a finger to her lips in thought, “I’d say about twenty years ago, give or take.”

There was no way that could be a coincidence. No way at all. It had to be… it had to mean…

“Adrien,” Nathalie whispered with a blank, almost horrified look of realization on her face, “Adrien.” she said a bit louder as she dropped from the air to her feet, numbly allowing the Goblin guards to take Rose back to the dungeons even as she called out her protests.

“Adrien?” Hawkmoth questioned as he joined her.

“The little Elf-boy who asked Rose to make the potion. He’s-” Nathalie almost didn’t want to say it. Because if she didn’t say it, then it wasn’t real, “I think he’s your son.”

“And what would make you think that?” Hawkmoth asked her.

“Adrien navigated this forest with incredible ease, considering he’s never been there before,” Nathalie rationalized, “He has tougher skin than any  Elf I’ve ever seen, and I mean that literally. He’s gotten into severe incidents and escaped with barely a scratch or a bruise on him… And, I saw once…”

“Saw what?”

“On his back,” Nathalie swallowed, “He has four little nubs, stumps, almost. Dark brown in color, he says he’s had them all his life. And if I look at you and remember, the positions seem to be the right spots for wings… your wings.”

“But he doesn’t have-” Gabriel trailed off as the word stumps settled into his mind. It could only mean, “You don’t think that-”

“I know how much his grandparents hated him, because his mother died giving birth to him. If he was also the product of what they would consider an unholy union,” Nathalie said slowly, “I’m more surprised now that he’s alive at all.”

“What do you suppose they did to him?” Hawkmoth pressed.

“They likely,” Nathalie covered her mouth with her hands, feeling nauseous just thinking about the brutality that had been inflicted upon an infant whose only sin was his parentage. She dry retched at the thought of the ritual the Elves would have thought nothing of performing, while she a Fairy couldn’t stand the thought of losing her wings, “Cut the wings off, with a sharp blade, and then,” she swallowed back a lump of bile that threatened to rise out of her throat, “Used hot metal… to, to cauterize the wounds.”

Even saying it, thinking it made her sick. Nathalie wanted to pass out, nearly being able to smell the scent of molten metal, hear the cries of an infant boy as he was clipped for the sake of people who didn’t even love him. She felt sick, but she also felt anger. Nathalie was only broken from her trance when she heard Hawkmoth whisper two words.

“My son,” he settled down far on the other end of the room, setting his staff down with a heavy clang. A heavy clang that seemed to resonate from his entire being.

Nathalie, ever the pragmatist, returned to what the purpose of Rose’s story had been in the first place, “Well, what are we going to do now?” she asked the empty air, “This antidote won’t work for Marinette. I don’t think she’s ever loved anyone the way you need to in order to break the curse. At least, she couldn’t have, or else it wouldn’t have worked in the first place, right?”

“Do you know?” he asked her, “how many years I have regretted what I nearly did?”

“Seeing the effects the potion has had on other people, I would have to say many,” Nathalie agreed, “You’re locking them up for their own protection, and before hearing that story I didn’t understand why.”

“I shouldn’t have done it,” he lamented, “I never should have tried to use the potion on that poor, sweet- even without Adrien in the picture, even if nothing had come of our union. Even if it had worked… Nothing would have been-”

“Real,” Nathalie finished as she sat down beside him.

The love potion wasn’t about love, despite what Rose and the Imp likely thought it for. It was about power, the power the user would have over their victim, blind adoration and affection. It was a powerful weapon, because the true person became buried under emotions that weren’t their own, an utter slave to a false desire. Nathalie already knew that Adrien would never have done something like this on his own. He didn’t have the calculating nature for it, he loved Marinette too much to have even considered it before. But someone had to have been able to influence him, Nathalie shuddered as she realized there was only one person who would have had more use for a potion than Adrien, and how he and her sister had become pawns in her ex-fiance’s game.

He looked up at her, surprised at her ability to relate. Nathalie came out of her thoughts. With a sad smile she continued, “Trust me, I know all about getting your heart broken.”

“You do?” it seemed unlikely to him that she could, give how poised and composed and tenacious and lively she was. It was too intrinsically odd that she could be as broken as he imagined heartbreak to be. She was a Fairy, Fairies were emotional, but fickle and once they had cried they were suddenly over what bothered them. That was what he’d always been taught. For her to say such a thing, she hadn’t lied to him before now, she was too straightforward for that. So she had to be telling the truth. And she wanted to share the rest of it with him. She found him worthy, and that thought floored him.

“I almost married someone,” she confided, “who didn’t love me. I even had my wedding dress made by Marinette… and then, I found out… he did something unforgivable.”

“Why did you almost marry him then?” it was a stupid question. Like it or not, as much as she didn’t fit the mold Nathalie was royalty. Political marriages were too common for both of them. Though he at least had Duusu aiming for love in his case.

“He was so good looking,” she said it as a statement of fact, without any emotions at all.

“Oh,” he could understand, she was a fairy. Fairies were attracted to beauty by their very nature. But their constitution of beauty was nothing that could ever be found in his domain. She would never find anyone like him beautiful. And oddly enough, the thought hurt. More than it hurt that his son had stolen from him, had been stolen from him for nearly twenty years. Time that could never be gotten back and that the boy would likely never accept something like him as a father. Perhaps it was for the best, Gabriel wasn’t certain he was even cut out for fatherhood.

“And charming too,” Nathalie added, “To put it simply he was everything I’d been brought up to want in life. And, I’m considered a spinster, by royal standards. An awkward, hard to approach spinster. It was a betrothal, but for the longest time I was duped by the standards of society into believing I was happy. He lavished attention and compliments on me and everyone just went on and on about how perfect a couple we made. It was the day of the wedding I had real and solid proof he wasn’t everything he’d pretended to be. Deep down, I think I always knew it, there were things that didn’t add up. I just couldn’t see- maybe I didn’t want to see…”

“See what?”

“See…” Nathalie said, “that he was really a shallow, power-hungry, cheating, chattering, pig, son of a-”

“Whoa,” he held up his hands, noticing how her ire had grown with each insult she hurled at the faceless man who had hurt her so badly.

Nathalie sighed, “I was duped into believing I was changing for the better. But deep down I think I always knew that he never wanted me to be-”

“You?” he supplied helpfully.

“Exactly,” Nathalie agreed.

“Well, you…” Hawkmoth fumbled for words, “are… different.” the last word was said almost stiltedly, like he had started saying it, realized it wasn’t appropriate to say, but instead of cutting himself off his body decided to finish the action anyways.

Nathalie let out a breath of sardonic laughter, “I’ve been told, on many occasions.”

“But that’s what I like,” Hawkmoth was quick to add, coughing and clearing his throat when she looked at him. He was embarrassed, and yet it made her feel better to know there was another royal in this world who was just as awkward and poor at the whole social thing as she was.

“Well,” Nathalie decided to let it slide, “Here we are a year later. And I’ve changed, for myself this time. Now, I’m stronger, because I keep my guard up,”

“Me too,” he agreed.

“Keep my emotions in check,”

“Of course,”

“And most importantly, I never trust anyone.” it was a surprise when they both finished that last sentence. So surprising that they shared a laugh. And then a look. And the look kept stretching until Nathalie broke it, her cheeks flushing pink.

“You know?” she started, “I think we could use a break, maybe we should go stretch our wings?”

“Good idea!” Gabriel said quickly, stooping to pick up her sword and hand it back to her.

“Thank you,” Nathalie said softly as he led the way out of the castle.