Faces. Alya, standing beside my bed, Nino at her side, tears slipping down their cheeks. My parents, piling bags of wheat into a stone vault. A queen, giving me a necklace of pearls. Adrien...lying dead in my lap. HawkMoth, holding me limp in his arms as he gives me to the mummies. Chat Noir below me as I'm falling...falling...falling...

I shot up in bed, shivering with fear. What a bad dream!

...

The lady in purple watched as Marinette fell back asleep. Then silently slipped a necklace of pearls into her room before giving her a kiss on the head, "Sleep well, dear thing," The lady in purple whispered, then disappeared into the night.

...

I sat up in bed right before my alarm sounded. Saturday! I jumped out of bed and ran to my closet. After grabbing clean clothes, showering, brushing my teeth, and putting my hair in pigtails, I ran downstairs to the kitchen. My parents were already down in the bakery, so I switched on the TV. Immediately, it showed Chat Noir and Scarlet Lady fighting an Akuma.

A man named Mr. Pigeon was controlling pigeons around Paris to attack policemen and park rangers...weird. Glad it was the superheroes who had to take care of stuff like that, and not me.

I watched as Chat Noir called up his special ability and cause the ground where Mr. Pigeon stood to crumble.

Then, he gave a wink at the camera as he flipped over a trapped Mr. Pigeon, grabbing his necklace. He tossed it to Scarlet Lady. She threw it on the floor then stomped on it. Nothing happened. Pretty soon, she was jumping on it, trying to break it. Finally, it snapped and the Akuma flew out.

I unpeeled a banana and began to nibble at it when my phone suddenly lit up.

I opened my text messages to find Alya had sent me a video. It was of Chat Noir destroying the ground beneath Mr. Pigeon's feet. I looked at the TV and sure enough, there was Alya, her phone out.

I sighed, wishing again she wouldn't get so involved with danger. Then my phone died.

After finishing my banana, I ran upstairs to my room and sat down by my computer. The screen lit up with a picture of me, Adrien, Alya, and Nino at the park, looking silly.

I logged into my email, to ask Adrien for fashion advice. I'd recently finished sewing a new dress, but I felt like it needed something. I hoped Adrien could help. Normally I'd just text him, but since my phone died and I was too impatient to charge it, email would have to work.

As I went to take a picture of the dress, I noticed something in the background of the camera.

I stood and set the dress down.

On my dresser was a pearl necklace.

"What on earth?" I murmured, picking them up. They were beautiful...but how'd they get in my room? My mom wouldn't have put them there. She would have wrapped them in a box or something...besides, it's anywhere near my birthday!

"Weird..." Gently, I set them in my jewelry box.

Suddenly, facetime popped up on my computer. I accepted the call, and Rose's face appeared, "Marinette! Everyone's waiting for you at the movies? You coming?"

I paled. I'd totally forgotten, "Ya! I'm coming...sorry. My phone just died. Don't worry, I'll be there in like five minutes! Don't wait for me."

...

Alya waved at me from the front of the movie theater as I ran over. How did she always manage to make it on time?

"I know, I know, I'm late-" I said, hurrying over.

"Come on girl!" Alya shushed me, having me hurry into the theater. After paying for our tickets we ran into the theater.

We went to the middle aisle where are friends were. We squeezed down till we were towards the end. Two seats were available. One next to Nino, who sat next to Adrien, and one on the other side of Adrien. Alya hurriedly past me, and sat next to Nino, then sent me a wicked grin.

I decided to ignore her matchmaker attempts and sit calmly next to Adrien.

He smiled, "H-H-Hey Marinette!"

"Hey Adrien! It's so awesome that your dad let you go out," I commented, smiling at my friend, but I felt guilty inside. He probably preferred to sit next to someone else...I think I made him uncomfortable. Lately, he'd been stuttering a lot around me. Huh! What if he was scared of me...maybe I should try talking to him more?

Adrien nodded giving a weak smile, "Ya! I can hardly believe it...I have to guess Natalie had something to do with it. The fact that I've made such gorgeous-I mean Great! Great is when I want. I mean, what I meant, I mean...umm...nevermind. "

I nodded, then frowned..this wasn't working. I needed a better-talking subject, "Umm...do you know what movie we're watching?"

Adrien hesitated, thinking, then shook his head. He asked Nino if he knew, but when Nino shrugged, he asked Alya.

Alya shook her head.

I watched as the question went down the line, but no one seemed to know the answer...well, one person did. Rose suddenly stood and smiled, "We're watching 'The Love of His Princess'!"

Everyone went quiet.

Then, "Oh no!" Kim groaned.

The Love of His Princess was just about the biggest romantic soap opera there was...

Even though outwardly I was calm, I was secretly ecstatic. I LOVED this movie. I was such a romance geek. (Are those even a thing?) Besides, I knew Alya loved this movie too...and Nino...actually, I'm pretty sure the entire class loved this movie. Even if no one would ever admit it in a million years (Except Rose)...well, I thought no one would admit it...

"No way! This used to be one of my mom's favorites! I love it," Adrien said.

The row went dead silent.

Adrien looked confused, not understanding what he'd done wrong...I suddenly felt a fierce love for him (Sisterly love) and smiled, "I love this movie too! I think the first time I watched it was with my cousin...We both cried at the end."

Adrien laughed, "I think I did too...I don't know, it was a long time ago," He admitted.

Suddenly, another voice piped up, "Me and Ivan watch this one all the time! I always end the movie in tears," Mylen said. Ivan nodded.

Soon, everyone was admitting how much they loved the movie. Even Kim and Alix! I looked at Adrien in amazement. He was like a golden prince...spreading some kind of disease throughout everyone...a disease of...of...I didn't even know the right word for it. Truth? Joy? Self-love? Happiness? Something like that.

Then, the movie theater went dark, and the movie started.

...

"Plagg, I've never been to the movies before...much less with my crush! What do I do? Should I try and put my arm around her? Hold her hand-"

"NO!!!" Plagg exclaimed, then regained composure, "Kid, you don't even know if the girl likes you. Listen, I'm an expert at this kinda stuff. The first thing you need to do is become good friends with Marinette...you know what? We'll talk about this more later...you need to hurry. You're about to miss my favorite part of the movie..." Then the kwami's eyes went wide.

I laughed, "Did you just-"

"I made a mistake, okay? Let us NEVER speak of this-"

"You like 'The Love of His Princess'!" I laughed.

"Do not."

"Oh come on Plagg! Deep down you're just as soft as you're beloved camembert," I winked.

Plagg grumbled something about Tikki wearing off on him.

...

"Bye guys! I'll see you tomorrow...we're still on for the homework session, right?" I asked Adrien, Alaya, and Nino.

They nodded, and Alya gave me a wave, then mouthed, 'I'll text you later'.

I nodded back, then went inside my house. After climbing the stairs, I walked into the family room. Then gasped.

A suitcase sat there. A cherry red suitcase with a small crown stitched on the left-hand corner. I knew it was there because I'd sewn it there.

"MICAH!" I yelled, running down the hallway that connected to the family room. When I came to the end of it, I opened the door that stood there. It led to the guest room.

There sat my most favorite person in the world. Micah McLesley. My older cousin/big-brother-figure.

Micah was sitting on the bed with a pair of socks, just like he always did when he came to visit.

I ran into his arms and melted into him, "Buganette!" He laughed. I loved Micah's laugh. It was full to the brim with joy and love...well, sometimes the love was substituted with mischief depending on why he was laughing.

I pulled back and smiled, "Micah, I didn't know you were coming to visit! What's the occasion?"

Micah let me go and shook his head, "No occasion...mainly because I'm not here to visit."

I gave him a confused look, "Mari...I am a senior in high school, which means I'm starting to look for colleges...and I hear there are some pretty good ones around here...but if I want to get an early look at them, I figured I needed to start as soon as possible. But I couldn't just miss my senior year of high school...so..."

My mouth dropped open, "No. Way. You're gonna be here all year!?!" I exclaimed, smiling so wide it hurt.

Micah nodded, "Yup...but that's not all. While you're a sophomore at your school...I'll be a senior...at your school."

"We're going to school together!!?!" I asked happily.

Micah nodded.

"YES! Oh, I can't wait to introduce you to my friends...I have three awesome ones! My bestie, Alya, and then Nino and Adrien. We do, like, everything together! In fact, Alya and Nino are coming over to study for a test with me tonight...you can meet them then!"

Micah nodded, "Didn't you say there was a third? Edren or something?"

I frowned, "Adrien...he can't make it. His dad is really strict about letting him go over to friends' houses, and stuff like that. Adrien has his own bodyguard and everything, though I can't imagine why anyone would want to hurt him. He's so super nice, and thoughtful, and just an all-around amazing person!"

Micah gave me a teasing smile, "Sounds like you really like him. Really."

I gave him a gentle shove, "Come on Mic, we're just friends...well unless you ask Alya. She has a bad habit of playing matchmaker and..."

But even as I told Micah all about my friends, Micah's mind drifted. College wasn't the only reason he'd come to Paris. With in the first few days, he moved to Paris, I caught him looking at me weirdly...I couldn't place the look though. My cousin's eyes were filled with...pride? Guilt? Love? Sadness? Regret? Almost like he knew something I didn't. And I didn't like it.

...

"So Micah, how are your parents? Is Auntie Nessie still teaching dance?" I asked. It was a windy Monday morning, and we were walking to school. It looked like it was going to rain.

Micah nodded, "Yup...though I think she's gonna change studios again. It's funny the change that's come over her latest one...let me tell you, the teachers couldn't even dance properly, much less the students...but Ma set them straight, so much so that they don't need her help anymore. I think she's looking into a new studio somewhere in Pennsylvania."

I smiled, "It must be so cool to travel all over the U.S. helping people. Both your parents."

Micah laughed, "If you can call what my dad does helping people. He tells people to help other people by throwing money in their faces. But I mean, my parents have their charities, and have always had more than enough time for me...but I just wish we had a home...well, one we always go back to."

I nodded, "Don't you guys have like three houses in Georgia alone? I know Uncle Liam had said something about getting a third last Christmas. That's nice that you always have a nice place, a really nice place to go."

Micah nodded, "Benefits of being a rich kid...Weird...when I was little, I hated being rich, and helping people."

I nodded, interrupting, "You were a jerk."

Micah shrugged, "I'm not denying it...you know, I wish could have gone to private school earlier, instead of always being homeschooled by Ma. I think that would have taught me sooner..."

I shrugged, "Well, if you'd never been a jerk, we'd never have ended up so close...I was kinda your only friend for a while."

Micah nodded, "My evil little cousin/ partner in crime."

I shrugged again, "Lots of pranks."

"Lots of glitter."

"Lots of cereal."

"Lots of silly string."

"Lots of messes."

"Lots of angry parents."

"All, totally worth it."

Micah nodded then after a pause, gave a mischievous smile suddenly, "So...any cute girls at your school?"

"Besides me?"

"Mari."

"Fine, fine, fine...umm, we don't see the seniors a whole ton...but there was this one girl. She's got a mixed ish complexion with this gorgeous long hair. It's like a silky brown. But her eyes are what caught my attention. They're a greenish turquoise that and are rimmed with yellow in the center...I think her name's Mira? Or maybe Tesa? Tessie? Mesa? Misa? Meesa? I really don't know..." I admitted.

Micah made a gesture like he was straightening his jacket, "Gotcha. Girl with weird eyes. Mission understood," Micah leaned down and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

I swatted him gently on the nose, "Don't get into trouble. I do not want to have to pick you up from the principal's office. That means, NO PRANKS."

Micah gave a laugh, "Please, Buganette. I'm way too old for that!"

I rolled my eyes, "whatever you say, Mic."

We walked into the building and went off to our separate classes.

...

"Micah, welcome. How have you been?" Master Fu asked.

I shrugged, "I was great until I found out about Mari."

Master poured me my third cup of tea, "I'm sorry you had to find out the way you did...It was...not intended."

I sighed, "That's one way of putting it...my parents..."

"Your parents have always helped look over the miraculouses. It was my fault they were never allowed to tell you."

"I know..."

"Are you ready to begin?" Fu asked.

I nodded, "Anything to protect my cousin...so, what happened?"