Okay! Back by some demand of a few of my readers, "Be Her Wings" is BACK and back to stay! Now, let's start from scratch!

Once upon a time, a woman was planting flowers in her garden, and quietly wished for a child of her own, even if she were no bigger than her thumb... And as if her wish were granted, a small girl the size of her thumb was born out of one of her tulips. And so the woman named her baby girl...

HAH! Had you going there, huh? Well, I'm not going to put our Marinette in a stereotypical damsel-in-distress position like that! I'm twisting the story in a lot of ways, not the least of which being that Marinette's the size of an average human girl.

Here's how the story's really going to go down: Marinette's still your basic high-schooler who still has her Miraculous as Ladybug, but Marinette's family isn't Tom and Sabine - she was orphaned about three years prior to this story and was hence adopted by the Bourgeois family! While André and Audrey treat her well enough (Audrey has nothing but good things to say about Marinette and her design talents and skills), whenever it's just Marinette and Chloé, Chloé never makes any secret of her disdain towards the designer, to the point of abuse.

Instead of waiting around for things to look up or for someone to save her, Marinette shows resilience and makes efforts to improve her life on her own, and always has people to confide in, Tikki especially.

But one night as she's humming, she winds up meeting Adrien, the prince of the fairies (who IS the size of an average teenage human age by default), who's been secretly sweet on her and watching her.

Songs included (in pieces, whole, with or without modified lyrics)
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Cinderella (1950)
Let Me Be Your Wings - Thumbelina soundtrack

People don't necessarily believe in fairies, do they? Then riddle me this: if abstract creatures called kwamis can interact with humans thanks to being connected to magical jewelry, then why can't fairies be real, either?

Contrary to the story of "Thumbelina," fairies aren't the tiniest things that've ever existed. In fact, fairies are likely to be hiding in plain sight. You may even be sitting next to one right now and not even know it! Because fairies are only tiny when they need to be, otherwise they're the same size as us people. And fairies only need to be tiny when they're working in the realm of nature.

When they're not working in the flower fields or any other form of nature around the world, fairies are living amongst the humans, as humans, trying to help preserve the planet. They're willing to cause misfortune to the mass populace at large every now and again to prove a point.

Our story stars a beautiful human girl, whom I'm sure you know quite well as Marinette Dupain-Cheng, secretly the heroine of Paris, France known as Ladybug, and owner of the Ladybug Miraculous... And how she learns that magic doesn't just exist in the Miraculous...

The star-sparkled night sky of Paris, France was unassuming and normal. But then several small speckles of light whooshed across the sky like shooting stars and if one listened closely, they'd hear the chuckles and giggles of people.

The morning broke and all was quiet in Paris. In the beautiful, ornately-decorated lobby of the Grand Paris hotel, a girl of about seventeen, wearing a dark gray blazer over a white floral print shirt, pink pants, red flats, and a clutch purse was walking around. She had her black hair in pigtails and she had blue eyes.

The girl looked in her backpack and took out a dress she'd finished. Or rather, she'd just finished it and then the true daughter of the house, Chloé Bourgeois, went and deliberately ruined it before the lady of the family, Audrey, could see it. It was completely torn and ripped in places and there were deliberate stains made on the dress.

"Chloé did it again," She quietly whined. "Why does she always do this to me?"

"I think she's just jealous of you, Marinette," A small red creature with dark blue eyes, eyelashes, and a black spot on both sides of her head and on top of her head said. "You're so resilient, and you've really gotten good at sticking up for yourself recently."

"Thanks, Tikki," Marinette said as she kept looking around for Chloé. "But I'm just gonna get to school before she rears her ugly head again."

So, instead of waiting around for her adoptive sister, Marinette just ran out of the hotel. The doorman paid her no mind and Marinette started to run to school.

As she ran by a few flowers outside the hotel, her movements caused the flowers to move along with the breeze she created. A speckle of sparkling light flew off the flower petal before hanging there a second and flying off into the sky.

Later on at the school, the girl arrived inside the building and she was looking around for someone. Someone she could trust and confide in. And she knew just the person.

"Marinette!" A girl with shoulder-length dark red hair with lighter tips, tan skin, hazel eyes behind black glasses, wearing an orange flannel shirt and blue jeans said as she ran up to Marinette.

"Hey, Alya." Marinette said as she opened up her backpack.

"Chloé give you a piece of her mind again, girl?" Alya Césaire, head of the school blog and runner of the Ladyblog said as she saw her pigtailed bestie with a disheartened look on her face.

Marinette merely gave a nod as she held the ruined dress up for Alya to see, and said, "Yes."

"Girl, you're not changing my mind! Leave the hotel and move in with me and my family!" Alya said.

"And you're not changing my mind either," Marinette said. "I can't do that yet. You and your parents have enough mouths in the house to feed. I'd only be in the way."

"No you wouldn't, Marinette!" Alya said. "I've already talked to my parents about it and they said that they'd do whatever they can to help you and keep Chloé away from you! Hell, Nora was even talking about beating up the mayor on your behalf!"

"No way! Nor - er, Anansi would get into major trouble! Then Mrs. Bourgeois's going to think I put Anansi up to it, she'll condemn me as a designer and then I'll never work in the industry!" Marinette began.

"Girl, you're getting upset over nothing again," Alya said. "That woman hardly gives Chloé the time of day because you deserve all the praise she gives you and your designs."

"Which is probably why Chloé's had it out for me ever since the Bourgeoises took me in," Marinette muttered. "But it won't be forever. Once I hit eighteen, I'm getting a job and moving out. So I'm just gonna keep working on my portfolio and resumé for the time being."

"That's the spirit! Instead of waiting around for something to happen, you're preparing yourself to make things happen on your own. And once you're employed and out of that hotel, then you can come live with me and my family!" Alya said.

"I think that's a fair deal." Marinette said with a smile.

The girls laughed a bit before rendezvousing with the rest of their friends - Rose, Juleka, Myléne, and Alix. They've always been there for Marinette since day one. They'd often help her out whenever she had problems, listening to her when she needed it (especially on her rants about Chloé), modeling whatever designs survived Chloé's wrath and even going to her for help, since she was the class president.

"Hey Marinette!" Rose said, ever the bubbly one. She was of average height with short blonde hair and large periwinkle eyes, wearing mostly pink.

"Hi girls." Marinette said as she and Alya sat in the middle of the group. She sighed a bit.

"You okay?" Juleka asked.

"I've been better," Marinette said as she took out the dress that Chloé ruined. "Another one of my pieces ruined by the Queen Witch. Good thing I took pictures."

"Yeah, pictures are great, but seeing the real thing would've been so much better! I don't understand why you don't just tell Mayor and Mrs. Bourgeois what's going on!" Alix, the short, pink-haired tomboy of the group stated.

The others were murmuring in agreement.

"The mayor never takes responsibility or disciplines Chloé and Mrs. Bourgeois doesn't even care what goes on with her. I'd probably get two different reactions, but no action would be taken... Why'd they take me in anyway?" Marinette explained.

"Well, I seem to remember Mrs. Bourgeois going on and on about how she'd be "taking in an exceptional designer who deserves all the resources the Bourgeois family can provide," or something like that." Alya said.

"At least Chloé's mother sees just how talented and skilled you are, Marinette," Rose said. "And she's the queen of fashion, so that's saying a lot."

Marinette sighed and hugged her legs, nodding in response to her friends' comments before saying, "Thanks. You girls are the best friends I've ever had."

The girls shared a group hug, happy that Marinette valued them as much as they did her.

"Hey, do you wanna know what I think you need to help you get through life?" Rose asked. "A boyfriend!"

"A boyfriend? Me?" Marinette asked, pointing to herself.

"Rose's totally right! Me and Nino are tight!" Alya said.

"Yeah! Nothing to help you forget your troubles than a boyfriend!" Myléne said. "Look at me and Ivan! And it's all thanks to you, Marinette!"

"No way, girls! A boyfriend... I've never thought of that." Marinette said.

"Well, a boyfriend would be the perfect person to design clothes for," Alya said. "Someone you can get offload your artwork on!"

"That'd be great... Anyone in mind?" Marinette jokingly asked.

"What about Luka?" Rose asked. "He seems fond of you!"

Juleka nodded in agreement while Marinette blushed at the notion. Luka, Juleka's older brother. There were definitely sparks between the pigtailed designer and the older guitar player, but...

"I... I don't know," Marinette said. "I mean, he's nice, cool... And he's quite the looker, but..."

"Don't rush into this, girl. And besides, once you get a boyfriend, you can make clothes for him. Artworks that Chloé wouldn't ruin." Alya said.

"That'd be a dream come true... Chloé never picking on me or ruining my designs..." Marinette said.

"Girl, when you get back home today, you're going to tell Mrs. Bourgeois what Chloé's been doing to you and your clothes! Don't question me on this!" Alya said.

"Amen! Your GF's aren't going to stand by and let this happen to you!" Alix commented.

"...You're right. I'm going to say something to Mrs. Bourgeois when I get back." Marinette said.

"That's the way, girl! You're going to be fine!" Alya said.

Some flowers were nearby the girls, and a few sparkles of light flew off the petals and floated around the air. One sparkle hung around and seemed to be interested in Marinette. The light flew off, almost as if remembering something.

As the girls kept talking and gossiping about nothing in particular, the peace was disturbed when there was a huge explosion on the third floor of the building and smoke billowed out of the broken window.

This could've only meant one of two things: someone caused an explosion in the chemistry lab or an akuma was on the attack. And judging by the running and screaming students, it was the latter.

"Ooh! A scoop for the Ladyblog! Ladybug and Cat Noir should be showing up any second!" Alya said, taking her phone out and running to the action scene. Rose and the others did the safe thing and ran for cover.

Marinette started to run for the girls' room.

"Marinette, what are you doing?!" Alix shouted.

"I uh... Thought I'd take shelter in the girls' room!" Marinette shouted as she ran off to go and hide.

Just as she'd told Alix, Marinette ducked into the girls room and ran into one of the stalls. After checking to see if anyone else was there, she let Tikki out of her bag.

"Tikki, spots on!" Marinette shouted as she activated her Miraculous. After transforming, she was now wearing a skin-tight red jumpsuit with black spots and a matching domino mask.

She took the yo-yo off her hips and she zipped off to the rescue, muttering, "Cat Noir better hurry up!"

In a large, ornate mansion near the hotel, one could see a boy at one of the large windows. He had blonde hair that was swept back and lime green eyes. he was looking out the window sadly He was also wearing casual clothing, and he had a thick, silver band on his right ring finger.

His phone started going off and he pulled up a live news feed.

"This just in: an akuma is attacking at the François-Dupont Lycée! Please evacuate the area or take shelter as soon as possible." Nadja Chamack, the news anchor said on the phone.

"Time to get to work, Plagg!" The boy said.

"Come on, Adrien," A small black creature that looked like a cat with green eyes said, addressing the boy. "You can't just slack off this one time?"

"No! Plagg, claws out!" Adrien shouted.

He then transformed, and he was wearing a black suit with gloves that had claws on it, black boots with silver tops for his toes, a silver baton on his back, black cat ears on his messy blonde hair, and a mask that covered the top half of his face and made his eyes look like those of a cat.

He leaped out the window and ran off to go and fight off the akuma.

The black cat hero arrived at the school, only to find Ladybug spinning her yo-yo to defend herself from small particle bombs and chemical beakers.

This time the villain was called Chemist. Basically, a student was retaking a chemistry assignment, but he kept making mistakes and he'd gotten so angry and frustrated at how many times he needed to start over just to get the stupid thing done. As a result, he'd been akumatized and was now another one of Hawk Moth's puppets.

He filled a beaker with more chemicals and he threw them at the superheroes. Ladybug raised her yo-yo shield and blocked the chemical assault. The blast knocked the pair back, and the fumes from the compounds were causing them to choke a bit.

"Ugh... It's stuff like this that's killing the planet!" Cat Noir muttered while trying to breathe.

This wasn't the first time Cat Noir complained about things that were killing the planet or depleting its resources. He clearly cared about the Earth and wanted to make sure he made a point about it. Ladybug didn't mind his rants. She cared, too.

"The akuma's *cough* gotta be in the safety goggles!" Ladybug wheezed.

The pair jumped back into the fight.

With a Cataclysm from Cat Noir, some surgical masks from the nurse's office to help their breathing, a rope to make a trip-wire and a giant container of pancake batter (Ladybug's Lucky Charm), they managed to trick Chemist into tripping onto the rope and landing fast-first into the vat of pancake batter. When he tried to get out, he was blinded by the pancake batter on the goggles and then Ladybug snatched them off.

She released and cleansed the akuma.

"Bye-bye, little butterfly. Miraculous Ladybug!" Ladybug shouted as she and Cat Noir threw the vat into the air. The magical ladybugs cleaned up the entire mess and repaired all the damage. Even all the air got cleaned up like nothing happened and the two superheroes could breathe again.

"Geez... That was bad for the lungs," Cat Noir complained. "I can only imagine how bad it's gotta be for people with asthma."

"No kidding," Ladybug said, but then there were some beeping noises heard. "Oh, we'd better split!"

"Right. See you next time, m'lady." Cat Noir said before taking out his baton and leaping away. Ladybug also swung away.

Once Cat Noir leaped back into his bedroom, he shut the window and he said, "Claws in."

His kwami flew out and he flew over to his cheese stash to get more camembert. He started chewing on it.

"Well, that was toxic," Adrien said. "Messing around with chemicals is dangerous enough. But add in an akumatization and it's going to get even more dangerous."

"Do all you fairies have this environmentalist mindset?" Plagg complained.

"Yes, we do. It's hard-wired in our brains and hearts," Adrien said as he sat down. "And I'd be doing a much better job at it if I wasn't confined to this mansion all the time, only sneaking out to fight akumas."

"Not only to fight akumas. You sometimes sneak out just to see a certain someone, whom you haven't even talked to yet." Plagg pointed out.

"...No argument there." Adrien said with a sigh.

Night had fallen, and Marinette was now standing outside Mrs. Bourgeois's office. She knew that her adoptive mother probably wouldn't like the interruption from her, but Marinette felt that it was better than nothing.

She knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Mrs. Bourgeois asked.

"It's Marinette." Marinette said.

"Come in." Mrs. Bourgeois said with a smile in her voice.

Marinette came in and saw Mrs. Bourgeois typing on her computer, working on the next issue of Style Queen magazine.

"Hi, Mrs. Bourgeois," Marinette said, still not comfortable with calling her "mom." "I... I need to talk to you about something."

"If it's got nothing to do with your works, which I'm dying to see, then make it fast." Audrey said as she continued to type.

"Well..." Marinette said, before explaining everything.

"RIDICULOUS! UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!" Audrey screamed, indignant. Marinette's eyes were wider than teacup saucers. She knew this was the reaction she'd get. "That girl has no right to ruin your exceptional work! Marinette, go to your room! I'll make sure Chloé doesn't do this anymore! And André won't hesitate to obey me and keep Chloé in line."

Audrey slammed her laptop shut and stormed out of her room in the hotel her phone in hand and calling up André.

"Well... That went better than expected," Tikki said, a little spooked by Audrey's temper. "At least Audrey's got your back."

"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about," Marinette said as she walked back to her room in the hotel. "Once Chloé finds out, she'll be even worse."

"Why not lock your door and work on some designs and forget about it?" Tikki suggested.

"Good idea." Marinette said, always grateful for Tikki.

Later on, Adrien was still in his room. He was reading a book - a novel about Hans Christian Anderson's life and how he came to write fairytales - but he was getting bored. He looked out the window and saw that the sun was setting. The boy smiled and he said, "Well, time to get back out there."

"You just got back from that akuma attack, and you wanna go back out again?" Plagg asked.

"Yeah, Plagg. I want to see her again..." Adrien said, a blush dusting his face.

"Ladybug?" Plagg asked.

"No, not Ladybug," Adrien said. "You know who I mean."

"Oh, that girl who lives at the hotel? The pigtailed one?" Plagg asked.

"Yep." Adrien said. He then closed his eyes, and he grew a pair of sleek, sparkling wings on his back that were fluttering at the speed of a hummingbird. He shrunk down to the size of an adult's thumb and on his waist he had a sheath with a sword.

"Remember what to do, Plagg?" Adrien asked.

"I know the drill. Stay hidden and keep the door locked." Plagg said as he opened up a cabinet and started eating camembert.

Adrien cracked a window open and he flew out.

Marinette had finished sketching out a few dresses, hats, and whatnot, not really going anywhere. She'd had a few works-in-progress scattered around her room, too. Her mind was wandering, worried about what'd happen later in the future. She just hoped Audrey would keep her word and put a stop to Chloé's torment. Otherwise, Marinette intended on taking matters into her own hands.

"You okay, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"Not really, no," Marinette said as she put her sketchbook down and stopped working on her designs. She stood up and stretched. "I... I've just been thinking."

"About what?" Tikki asked.

Marinette walked out onto the balcony of her room and she shut the door. She looked up to the starry sky and sighed sadly.

"I'm thinking that maybe the girls are right... Maybe getting a boyfriend wouldn't be a bad idea. At least having someone to love will help me cope with things until I turn eighteen." Marinette said.

"You've got a thing for Luka, right? Why not ask him out the first chance you get?" Tikki asked.

"I would, but... I guess I'm just scared," Marinette began before letting out a sad sigh. "A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep..."

A speckle of light was flying around, but as if hearing Marinette, it stopped and hovered nearby.

"In dreams you will lose your heartaches... Whatever you wish for you keep." Marinette sang softly as she held Tikki in her hands and kissed her on the head.

Inside the light speckle was Adrien. He smiled at her singing and continued to hover and listen. He'd taken a liking to how the girl was treating her kwami with so much love and affection.

This actually wasn't the first time he'd been to this balcony. It also wasn't the first time he'd seen Marinette either. In fact, he'd come by so many times just to see her that he'd lost count. There was just something so attractive about this human girl that he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Believe in my dreams and someday, my rainbow will come smiling through. No matter how my heart is grieving, if I work and keep believing. The dream that I wish will come true." Marinette sang.

Marinette sighed and stopped. The boy, wanting to hear more, hovered near her ear and said, "Please keep going! You've got an amazing voice!"

"Huh?" Marinette said, whipping her head around.

"What's the matter, Marinette?" Tikki asked.

"I thought I heard someone." Marinette said.

The boy flew around to Marinette's other ear and said, "Don't stop singing! I wanna hear more!"

"Ah! There it is again!" Marinette squeaked as she stepped away.

Tikki saw the boy fluttering around. Being only the size of the palm of Marinette's hand herself, Tikki spotted the smallest of things much easier compared to her owner.

"That's it! Chloé's torment is getting to me! That's gotta be why I'm beginning to hear voices in my head!" Marinette whined.

"No, I heard it, too," Tikki said. "And there's definitely someone here. You might not be able to see him, but I can."

"Okay, where's this person hiding?!" Marinette said, clearly spooked.

"Oh, I'm not hiding," The boy said into Marinette's ear once more before flying back a bit. "I'm right here."

In a flutter of sparkles, the boy grew to about her size and he landed on his feet, his wings out in the open.

Marinette screamed and backed away, shocked that a boy her age was standing right in front of her. She immediately ran back inside and slammed the door shut. Tikki followed her owner and looked at the boy through the glass door.

"Wait, please!" He said earnestly. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you!"

Marinette scoffed, rolled her eyes, and stated, "Says the boy who appears out of thin air with a sword!"

His wings drooped a bit. Just when he thought that he'd be able to make a move and talk to this cute girl, he'd spooked her. And she'd made it pretty clear that his sword wasn't helping. He took the sword off and let it fall on the ground with a clatter.

"Sword's gone," He said. "So, will you come out?"

Marinette looked to Tikki, who gave a nod in approval.

"Okay, but no funny business." Marinette said as she opened the door and walked back out on the balcony. She was scanning him with her eyes and she was looking at him as if she'd never seen a boy before.

"Is... Something wrong?" He asked.

"I..." Marinette began before rubbing her eyes and shaking her head. "Okay... Kwamis I understand; super villains I get... But... What or who are you? What kind of human has wings?"

Adrien glanced to his wings, then realized that's what freaked her out.

"He's a fairy, Marinette," Tikki explained. "You know, like Tinker Bell."

"Oh." Marinette said, understanding and sighing in relief.

"So... Marinette, right? That's a cute name." He said, blushing and rubbing the back of his head, a goofy smile still on his face.

"Thanks," Marinette said, blushing. "It's Catalan. It means "ladybug." So... Do you have a name I can call you?"

"Adrien." He said.

"It's nice to meet you, Adrien." Marinette said, shuffling her feet.

"Well... I guess we got off on the wrong foot," He said. "I... I didn't mean to startle you, honest."

There was a knock on the door to the bedroom and the butler said, "Mademoiselle? Is everything okay? I heard a scream."

"Oh, um..." Marinette began as she ran back inside and gestured for Adrien to hide. Getting the hint, Adrien shrank again and hid in the flowers on the balcony.

Marinette opened the door to let Jean-Yves in before telling him, "It's nothing, Jean-Yves. I... I was just watching a video and there was a jump-scare that came out of nowhere and it really surprised me. Guess I was too loud. Sorry about that."

"Alright then. Please inform me if you need something." Jean-Yves said before leaving the room.

Marinette sighed in relief, shut the door and locked it before running back outside. She said, "It's safe."

Adrien flew back out of the flowers and grew again before saying, "Thanks."

"No problem. I'm used to keeping secrets." Marinette said as Tikki flew in between them.

"Yeah, same here." Adrien said, glancing at the ring.

"I... Ever since I learned about the Miraculous, I knew magic was real... I guess I just thought that it only existed in the Miraculous." Marinette said, rubbing her arm in embarrassment.

"Looks like you were proven wrong tonight," Adrien said with a chuckle. "It's not every day you meet a fairy."

"But it's not every day you meet a kwami, don magic earrings, and become a super heroine either." Marinette giggled.

"Guess not." Adrien laughed back.

"So... I guess there're things about fairies that I either don't know or trivia that turns out to be completely wrong," Marinette said, stepping forward. "Like, say... Their size. I'd always thought they were the same size as Thumbelina."

"Oh yeah, I've heard that story tons of times," Adrien said. "Fairies are only that small when we need to be. Otherwise we're the same size as people."

"So I could've been talking and having fun with fairies and not even known!" Marinette laughed.

"Yep," Adrien laughed. "So... Anymore you wanna know?"

"Well, do they have a court or something? A prince maybe?" Marinette asked jokingly.

"Yes to both questions." Adrien said, a flirtatious look on his face.

"Well, I'm sure he's a busy guy," Marinette said, her eyes still on Adrien's. "I know I'm pretty busy, being Ladybug and all my other responsibilities."

"You're not wrong," Adrien said with a shrug. "Royal duties keep him occupied. He's gotta sneak out just to have some fun."

"Sounds sad," Marinette said. "I guess being royalty isn't all glitz, parties and romance like the stories tell."

"Definitely not," Adrien said, getting closer to Marinette. "But... I've been told he's handsome."

"So?" Marinette asked with a shrug. "The saying goes, "Beauty's only skin deep." Chloé's a perfect example of that."

"Well, I can tell that your beauty goes much deeper. In fact, I think it starts from the inside out." Adrien said, still getting closer.

"Flatterer," Marinette giggled, unaware that Adrien's face was mere inches from hers. "I'll bet the prince gets lonely all the time..."

"I've heard he does," Adrien said, secretly speaking for himself. "I... I'm sure you'd like to meet him. He'd probably appreciate the concern."

"Really? Well... Thank you." Marinette said, looking up at him under her lashes and blushing. He was clearly looking down at her, a smile on his face and his eyes directly on her lips.

Tikki's eyes were wide with delight at this. Marinette wasn't shying away from this boy, who clearly had an interest in her.

Adrien looked to his wings and back to Marinette before asking, "You... Wouldn't want to go out for a flight, would you?"

"Flight?" Marinette asked.

"Yeah," Adrien said. "I can fly around and carry you and you can see things from my perspective."

"Well, I technically "fly" as Ladybug, zipping around on my yo-yo all the time," Marinette said with a giggle. "But... That sounds like a lot of fun."

"Great! Come on!" Adrien said as he took Marinette's hand and went to the railing. Tikki hid in the clutch as always.

Then she realized something.

"Hold it!" Marinette said.

"What?" Adrien asked.

"Well... I actually don't think this is a good idea," Marinette began. "The citizens are used to seeing Ladybug and Cat Noir running or zipping around the skyline, along with any of Hawk Moth's flying super villains. But... I don't think they're going to have the best reaction to seeing a fairy in the flesh. Superheroes and super villains I know they'll understand, but fairies..."

"Hmm, you're right," Adrien said before smiling. "But whoever said that I'd be this size?"

"Wait, you're going to shrink? But what about me?" Marinette asked.

Adrien held her hand and said, "Trust me."

Marinette nodded. They started glowing in gold and sparkles before immediately shrinking down to the size of someone's thumb. Marinette screamed and clung to Adrien, who was flapping his wings and a chuckle rumbled from his chest.

"Don't worry. You'll be fine. Come on!" Adrien said as he held Marinette's hand and started flying away, with him leaving behind a trail of pixie dust.

"Wow..." Marinette said as she saw how the city looked from this new standpoint. It was humongous.

She was used to looking down from the rooftops, not looking up while being the size of someone's digit. Flowers seemed to be the size of buildings while she could ride a ladybug like it was a horse. Animals like dogs and cats were gigantic, like Gigantitan or some of the other larger akumas she'd faced in the past, like Glaciator or Gamer, or even Animan when he shapeshifted into a T-Rex.

"This is incredible! The one time I wish my transformation included wings!" Marinette said.

"Hey, maybe you'll sprout your own someday!" Adrien chuckled as he kept flying at high speed.

"Let me be your wings. Let me be your only love! Let me take you far beyond the stars!" Adrien sang as he flew to the Seine and brought Marinette under the bridge. With Adrien hanging on tight, Marinette ran her finger across the surface of the water, and saw the stars sparkling in the rippling water.

"Let me be your wings. Let me lift you high above!" Adrien crooned while bringing Marinette up to a cherry tree in full bloom. The pair started to waltz on one of the flower's petals. Adrien kept his eyes on Marinette's as they continued dancing. "Everything we're dreaming of will soon be ours!"

Adrien jumped off and began flying again, with Marinette hanging on tightly.

"Anything that you desire. Anything at all..." Adrien sang while he and Marinette landed on the back of a migrating mute swan, who was just landing from flight.

They were once again dancing, with Adrien smiling at Marinette and holding her close to him. Marinette was looking into his eyes, detecting nothing but sincerity and passion.

"Every day I'll take you higher and I'll never let you fall!" Adrien crooned while holding onto Marinette's waist and flying up to the sky again.

"Let me be your wings..." Adrien sang as he went to the top of a street lamp and he did a spin with Marinette, including an underarm turn. "Leave behind the world you know for another world of wondrous things!"

As if doing ballet in mid-air, Adrien flew Marinette around the bulb of the light and did an impromptu pa de deux with her.

"We'll see the universe and dance on Saturn's rings! Fly with me and I will be your wings!" Adrien sang while flying through a nearby flowerbox on a windowsill.

A few insects saw them flying by, and one of them asked, "Wow! She's going to marry the prince, isn't she?"

"Who knows?" Another insect said.

"Anything that you desire! Anything at all..." Adrien sang while holding Marinette's hands.

"Anything at all..." Marinette sang, not looking away from Adrien's eyes. He smiled at the sound of her singing.

"Every day I'll take you higher and I'll never let you fall!" Adrien sang, his eyes closed while accidentally letting go of Marinette. Noticing his mistake, he dove down after her.

"You will be my wings (let me be your wings)..." Marinette sang, not scared of falling at all. She trusted Adrien, who caught her and started carrying her like his bride. She started tenderly stroking his blonde hair, and he'd showed no discomfort about it.

"You will be my only love..." Marinette sang softly, still looking him in the eyes.

"Get ready for another world of wondrous things!" Adrien crooned.

"Wondrous things are sure to happen..." Marinette sang, smiling and blushing while snuggling closer to Adrien.

"We'll see the universe and dance on Saturn's rings!" The pair sang while Adrien landed on a rose in full bloom.

"Heaven isn't too far!" Adrien sang, holding Marinette's hand.

"Heaven is where you are." Marinette sang in reply while bopping Adrien on the nose with her finger. He chuckled.

"Stay with me and let me be your (you will be my) wings~!" The pair crooned while Adrien shot up flying again, holding Marinette by the waist and raising her up while flying. The two of them held the note.

Marinette never thought she'd literally fly with joy at finding someone. It just never occurred to her how it'd be possible without her Miraculous. Marinette looked at Adrien, and he returned her gaze.

Later on, Adrien brought Marinette back to her balcony, still holding her in a bridal carry. Once he crossed the railing, he and Marinette grew back to normal size. He gently put her down.

"That... That was one of the best times I've ever had," Marinette said. "I don't think I remember the last time I've had so much fun."

"I'm glad," Adrien said with a blush on his face. "I don't think I remember the last time I've had fun either. Not since my mother..."

Marinette looked at Adrien, worried about the sad look on his face.

"Oh, um, never mind," Adrien said, shaking his head. "I... I don't think I've ever felt this way about anyone before..."

Adrien started to lean in closer to Marinette to kiss her... But then his phone started going off. He looked at the number and rolled his eyes. "Damn it..."

Marinette asked, "Shouldn't you get that?"

"I would, Marinette, but..." Adrien began, but the phone continued ringing incessantly. "Ugh, fine..."

He swiped on the screen and said, "Yes, father?"

"Adrien, where are you? You're not answering the door to your room. It's nearly time for dinner." A cold man's voice said over the line.

"I'm... Out..." Adrien weakly said.

"Out? As in out of the mansion?" He asked.

"Y-Yes, father. I... I'm flying back as we speak!" Adrien began.

"Hurry up and get back home. I won't have you getting squashed like a roach out there." Adrien's father said.

"Yes, father..." Adrien moaned before hanging up.

"Who was that, Adrien?" Marinette began.

"Just the king of the fairies. My father." Adrien said with a roll of his eyes.

"Your father..." Marinette began, but then she blanched at the connection she made.

"Yes," Adrien began, but he turned around and held Marinette's hands. "C... Can I come back tomorrow night?"

"Wait, your father's the king, so that means...!" Marinette shouted.

"Yes, yes, I'm the prince of the fairies," Adrien said. "But please... Can I come back and see you tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow night?" Marinette asked.

"Yes! I... I'd like to see you again." Adrien said, blushing.

"Oh, I would too..." Marinette said. "I... I'll be counting the minutes."

"Great!" Adrien said. He planted a kiss on Marinette's cheek before backing away. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

He shrunk and started flying back to his home.

"Wow..." Marinette began, sighing. "I don't believe this... Not only do I meet a real-life fairy... But he's a prince."

"Wild night, huh?" Tikki said.

Marinette sighed wistfully before going back into her room. Dinner was about to be served in the hotel restaurant, too.

And that's the end of this chapter! Now to answer a question that I'm sure a lot of you are thinking: did Master Fu know that he gave the Cat Miraculous to a fairy? Answer: hell no! Sheer happenstance, I promise.

Coming up, Marinette continues her nightly meetings with Adrien, slowly falling in love with him and he with her. But what she doesn't know is that she's also spending time with Cat Noir, too. As they grow closer, Marinette's ability to hide her secret romance with him gets a little more challenging when a certain observant and trustworthy vixen starts catching on to Marinette's change in mood.

Now, let's see about a review goal: let's start at about 6+ and go from there, okay?