"Life's not a spectator sport. If watchin' is all you're gonna do, then you're gonna watch you're life go by without you!" – The Hunchback of Notre Dame

This day was a very special day for Marinette and her fellow classmates. Not because this was the day before spring break, but today was also their 10th grade field trip. Sure, they've had lots of trips over the year so far, but this trip was guaranteed to be the best one yet! For this trip, they were going to the most historical cathedral in all of Paris, Notre Dame.

As they all sat on the coach bus eagerly talking about visiting the cathedral, the only thing Marinette seemed to be excited about was being partnered with Adrien for the trip. She and Alya sat next to each other on the bus of course, but Alya could tell that her friend's mind was elsewhere as she tried to give her a game plan.

"MARINETTE DUPEIN-CHENG!" Alya shouted into Marinette's ear. Letting out a small shriek, Marinette's day dream of the trip turning into a date was quickly shattered and she wasn't really happy about it.

"AAH, W-What?!" she quickly replied, only to have Alya laughing hysterically in her face.

"Girl, you were totally zoned out for like the last 10 minutes! If you want your dreams to become a reality, just listen to my plan." Alya told her best friend with confidence. Marinette was truly lucky to have Alya as her best friend, even if the one secret she is keeping from her is the fact that she is Ladybug. When the time was right though, everything will come out into the open. But for now, Marinette listened to Alya's plan to get closer to Adrien. This time, at least she hoped, their relationship would blossom more.

Just as Alya was about to explain the plan, a small click came over the loudspeaker on the bus.

"Students, we have arrived at Notre Dame. You are advised and HIGHLY encouraged to be on your best behavior in this sacred place. Please stick with your assigned buddies and meet up at promptly 4pm for our wrap-up session. But also, have fun!" the professor announced. All of the students stood up and rushed off the bus to meet up with their buddies. Like always, Chloe and Sabrina were paired up, but they decided to also double team with Kim and Max. Alya and Nino were paired off, but knowing Alya, she was going to give Marinette the alone time she wants with Adrien.

Marinette stepped off the bus and saw Adrien waiting for her just a few paces away from where she was. Goodness, he was so cute. Marinette felt a slight blush burn into her cheeks as she approached him. Tikki took this opportunity to poke her head out and give Marinette some advice of her own.

"Don't worry, Marinette! Everything will be okay!" she squeaked right before Marinette hid her back into her purse.

"Hey, Marinette! Ready to explore Notre Dame?" Adrien greeted her, he seemed really excited about visiting Notre Dame. Marinette could feel his happiness and returned it with her cute cheeky smile.

"Oh yeah! Come on, let's go!" she said with confidence. Talking to Adrien wasn't so much of a challenge anymore, but Marinette did indeed slip up from time to time. They walked pretty close together as they entered Notre Dame with the rest of the class.

Notre Dame was like nothing they had ever seen before. Sure, some of them may have visited as children, but this time felt different. The sun shined in through the glass-stained windows, lighting up the main hall of the cathedral with a whole spectrum of colors. The statues and paintings of many famous religious figures lined the walls, all of their eyes pointing down and giving the illusion as if they were watching the class as they strode through the hall. Gentle organ and hymns could be heard distant in the cathedral, but what stood out the most was the ringing of the famous bells.

The class stopped in their steps to listen in awe at the beautiful melodies that were coming from the higher corridors of the cathedral. The toll of the bells could be heard all across Paris, but it was a lot different to be right at the heart of the magic.

"Welcome, my children!" a man's voice rang out in front of them. All of them turned to see the archbishop standing before this massive glass-stained window. All of the students crowded near him, even Chloe and Sabrina seemed highly interested in the announcement he had to make.

Adrien and Marinette looked at each other with excitement and tried to squeeze their way to the front of the crowd to get a better look. Once they got into a good spot, Marinette saw Alya out of the corner of her eye giving her a thumbs up on her progress so far. Giving her a thumbs up back, Marinette began to have a really good feeling about this trip! So far, everything was going along well!

"Welcome to Notre Dame, young children. As you explore the cathedral today, I hope you all find the magic and spirituality that those before you have when visiting this divine building. I know you were all given a worksheet to complete during your visit, but allow me to add an additional question. Can anyone name a story that maybe they have heard before about Notre Dame?" he asked. Everyone looked around kind of puzzled. There were many stories about Notre Dame, but Marinette decided to grab this chance for herself.

She quickly raised her hand, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame! Sure, it was a book written by Victor Hugo and then made into a movie, but just that one story has brought many travelers from around the world to experience the magic of Notre Dame first hand!" she spoke confidently. The archbishop nodded towards her, "She is right! But, the real question is, was that story or any other story for that matter TRULY fiction? That's something you can all figure out as you explore today!" he said before bowing to them and walking away.

Adrien turned to Marinette and placed his hand on her shoulder, "That was incredible! I didn't know you liked The Hunchback of Notre Dame, too!"

Marinette felt her face get hot again, but she remained confident. "Well, yeah! My mom always read the book to me and I loved the movie!" she said looking into his bright green eyes. Adrien felt his face get flushed a little watching her talk so passionately about the story. Feeling a bit unsure of what to do, and noticing all of the other groups had gone off already, he came up with a brilliant idea.

"Hey! Why don't we try to see the bells? Like he said, the story could be true for all we know! But, we'll have to go to the source!" he suggested, and was quickly proud that he did. Marinette smiled so brightly and obviously seemed to agree on the idea. Quickly, but quietly, they began to look around for a way to get to the bells. There were many prayer rooms and little alcoves, but none were what they were looking for. If anything, what they needed to find was a staircase. Marinette couldn't help but to feel drawn to the main part of the cathedral as she stared up at the giant stained glass window. Her thoughts drifted away from her adventure Adrien for a few moments and just felt like something was calling out to her. Suddenly, something came over Marinette as she looked to her right. There was a small old door with rusty hinges hidden away behind a red curtain. It didn't seem like much, but to Marinette, it seemed to hold the answer to this strange feeling that overcame her.

Adrien had only looked away for just a few minutes only to turn around and see Marinette walking towards are dark corner of the cathedral. There was something about Notre Dame that had changed Marinette in a way that seemed mystifying. Of course he wasn't just going to let her sneak off without him though, they were partners on this trip after all. He ran over to her side and poked her shoulder, "Marinette?" he asked, his voice low and gentle. Marinette didn't seem spooked by his sudden appearance at all, instead she seemed quite intrigued by something. With a small smile, she pointed at the old wooden door in front of her, "I think this what we were looking for!" she said happily. Adrien let out a small sigh of relief and looked at the door. It was very old and cracked, but the hinges didn't do it justice either. Adrien didn't want Marinette to get hurt trying to open the old door, so he gently moved in front of her. Slowly, he reached down to the door's handle and pulled it open, a small low creepy noise coming from it. It didn't seem to catch anyone's attention, which meant that it was time to explore! Adrien took a step inside the door, Marinette close behind him trying to get a look for herself. It didn't seem too dusty or anything, but it was a very narrow stairway.

Adrien looked back down at Marinette and held out his hand, "It's a pretty narrow staircase, hold onto my hand so you don't fall." Marinette felt like she could fly to the bells after he offered his hand. She nodded and took his hand, slowly following Adrien up the narrow staircase. His hand was so strong and yet very gentle with how he held her hand. They had only held hands a couple of times before, but this time felt different. As they made their way up the stairway, they occasionally passed a small window that showed the city getting smaller below them. It was quite a beautiful view, even though Notre Dame didn't seem that big from the outside, the views from the roof were probably so spectacular. Marinette began to think if she and Adrien could sneak up to the roof once they found the bells and share a magical moment like Quasimodo and Esmarelda, but she shook the idea out of her head as quickly as it came.

Adrien began to notice Marinette's grip tightening on his hand. He was going to turn around and ask if she was okay, but then again, he was pretty sure that they were almost at the top. Plus, if he had turned around now, he most likely startle her than help her out. They finally came to a wooden landing that opened up to an grand room filled with beams and old statues. The sun beamed in from openings in the walls and ceilings, letting in natural light and making the room glisten like it was in a fairy tale. Most importantly, some of the bells were in this room, and they were magnificent. With the sun hitting their bronze shells, a sense of warmth over came Adrien and Marinette as their faces lit up at the sight of them. Not only were the bells 30x their size, but that angelic glow just made them a sight to behold. Tikki poked her head out of Marinette's purse and Plagg poked his head out of Adrien's shirt a little to gaze at the bells as well, after all, it's not everyday one gets to experience this sight.

Still holding each other's hands, Adrien and Marinette walked slowly up to the first bell. The grand beauty that was the bell Marie, one of the larger bells in the Cathedral. Marinette could feel an overwhelming sense of admiration flow over her, almost like she was reliving a long lost memory. Her eyes began to swell a little as she looked up at the magnificent bell, but she didn't want Adrien to notice. Marinette walked slowly around the bell, but was careful to not step too close to the edge of the platform. As she made it around, she found the spot where they had engraved the name "Marie" into the large bell. Letting out a small smile, Marinette lifted up her hand to touch the bell, but quickly drew her hand back as a voice called through out the room.

"DON'T TOUCH MARIE!"