Ficlet Request 5

[mistkitt]

 Originally Posted: 12/21/16

Prompt: Hogwarts AU - Mari tries to invite Adrien to the ball and accidentally sends him a Howler

Let’s assume Marinette comes from a non-magical background and has no idea how to tell a Howler apart from normal stationery.

~*~

“You sent it to him, right?” Alya demanded as she and Marinette swept into the Great Hall for breakfast. “Because if you chickened out again…”

“I didn’t!” Marinette cried. She put a hand over her stomach, which had been twisted into knots since the night before. She’d be lucky if she had the appetite for a single croissant.

“And did you sign it?” Alya asked. Marinette had a history of forgetting to sign things: homework assignments, letters, the card on the yellow and black scarf she’d knitted Adrien for his birthday last term…

Marinette plopped down on the bench and stared glumly at the breakfast platter. “Yes, but even if I hadn’t, I sent it to him on red stationery so he should know it’s from me.”

Alya froze. “Red stationery?”

Marinette reached for a croissant. “Yeah, why?”

“ADRIEN,” a voice boomed through the Great Hall, making the both of them jump. 

Marinette whipped around and gasped. Her nice red stationery hovered in front of Adrien—wide eyed, slack-jawed, and pale—and screamed at him.

“I WAS WONDERING, IF YOU DON’T HAVE A DATE TO THE YULE BALL… YOU PROBABLY DO,  BUT LET’S SAY THAT THEORETICALLY YOU DON’T…”

“This isn’t happening,” Marinette whispered. “Please tell me this isn’t happening.”

Alya put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s happening.”

“WOULD YOU CONSIDER GOING TO THE YULE BALL WITH ME? LET ME KNOW.”

“Please tell me I forgot to sign it,” Marinette whimpered.

“LOVE, MARINETTE-DUPAIN CHENG.”

The Great Hall fell silent as the Howler shredded itself to little red bits that fluttered onto Adrien’s breakfast, spent and harmless. Then every single eye at the Slytherin table turned in Marinette’s direction. Chloe Bourgeois, seated at the other end of the table, pointed at Marinette and let out a shriek of laughter. Several titters and giggles followed.

Alya shook Marinette gently. “Hey. It’s not a big deal—”

Marinette jumped up and ran from the Great Hall.

~*~

An hour later, she lay curled up on a bed in the infirmary, faking period cramps so she could cry in peace. Of course by now the entire school must have heard of the morning’s incident, so the nurse may have just been taking pity on her. Still, she appreciated it.

A soft mew prompted Marinette to open her eyes. Standing with its front paws on the bed was the green-eyed black cat that had been following her around for the better part of the term. It carried an envelope in its mouth. “Bonjour Chat Noir,” Marinette whispered, rubbing him behind the ears.

Chat Noir dropped the envelope on the bed. Marinette frowned. It was addressed to her. She opened it with great caution, half-expecting it to be enchanted to laugh at her with Chloe’s voice, but what she found inside was a letter from Adrien.

Marinette, 

I’d love to go to the Yule Ball with you. Meet me at the library later?

- Adrien 

Marinette stared at the letter in disbelief. Then she looked at Chat Noir. “Did Adrien give you this?”

Chat Noir blinked at her and swept his tail across the floor.

Marinette let out a tearful laugh and scooped him into her arms. “He said yes,” she whispered, burying her face in Chat Noir’s fur. He purred and butted his head against hers, then squirmed out of her grasp and hopped off the bed.

Marinette watched him sneak past the nurse and out the infirmary door, wondering whose cat he was. 

Because as far as she knew, Adrien had come to Hogwarts with an owl.