The sun had set and was starting to rise again and Marinette hadn't slept at all since they'd reached their destination. The man who had fought off the soldiers in the woods- Plagg, he said his name was- had carried Chat to his home where his partner helped prepare an antidote to draw out the poison alongside the couple's hired hand. Tikki, Plagg's partner, had set up a comfortable bed to sleep in for the night, which Marinette had insisted been laid out by where Chat rested. Marinette was laying on Her stomach, watching the steady rise and fall of Chat's chest as he slept. His breathing had gradually gotten better, and he would fully recover eventually She had been told.

Still, he hadn't woken up yet.

Marinette laid there for a long time watching him, and the sun was just barely breaking over the trees when Tikki and Plagg's housekeeper came into the small shed they were in. She pulled the blanket up over Her chest, wearing clothes slightly too big for Her that Tikki, and insisted She kept. The woman was probably the kindest person She had ever met, a stark contrast to Plagg, whose friendliness had worn off after all the adrenaline left him. Apparently, Plagg didn't get much of a chance to fire his bow anymore and his "daring rescue" had been quite a surprise adventure for him.

"You're already awake?" the boy asked Her, grabbing a backhoe from the rack of garden tools. "Sleep well?"

"Yes, thank you," Marinette responded, still clutching the blanket to Her chest.

"And Your friend?" he asked, gesturing to where Chat was still sleeping. "Has he woken up at all?"

Marinette shook Her head. A frown passed across his face, which started to throw Marinette into a state of panic. He bent down beside Chat, looking him over and checking his pulse. The frown quickly dissipated, which calmed Marinette a little. "He still seems to be doing fine," the boy said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he woke up any minute now."

Even as Marinette's fear subsided, the worry lines on Her forehead didn't fade. She was staring at Chat intently, almost willing him to wake up. What would She do if he didn't?

No, Chat's strong, She told Herself. He'll be fine.

The boy was watching her from the other side of the room. "It's lucky Plagg found you," he said. "The fire tribe soldiers can be harsh to the people living in these parts. What did you do to piss them off anyway?"

He was chuckling to himself slightly as he asked the question. It was one Marinette didn't really know how to answer. She didn't know if She could reveal Her true identity to these people. Would they have heard of the King's death already? Marinette and Chat hadn't seen any other people in days, so they didn't know if the news had spread already or not. And if She did tell them She was the Princess, would they hand Her and Chat over to the Fire Tribe soldiers to keep themselves out of trouble? Marinette wouldn't blame them if they did.

In the end, She didn't answer. The boy didn't seem to push Her to break Her silence either. He just continued the conversation as though the momentary pause hadn't even happened. "I'm Nino, by the way," he said. "Things were so hectic last night trying to heal Your friend that we didn't get to have introductions."

"Marinette," Marinette answered, her voice kind of quiet.

"Well, Marinette if you're awake, do you want to come help me in the garden?" Nino asked.

The truth was Marinette felt bone-tired but She stood up anyway adjusting Tikki's borrowed dress on her small frame. She slipped on Her shoes and grabbed Chat's robe he wore over his tunic from where it was hanging as they stepped outside and followed closely behind Nino as they made their way to the gardens.

It wasn't the kind of garden Marinette was familiar with. Sure there were places where the palace had grown their own food, but that had been outside of the walls She had hidden behind Her whole life. Her gardens had been filled with perfectly kept, decorative flowers. Marinette knelt down beside the plants, rubbing the soft leaves between Her fingers. The smell coming from them was delightful, combined with the morning dew and the fresh dirt, it felt calming.

"That's a mint plant," Nino told Her as he looked over Her shoulder. "We also have carrots and tomatoes. I've wanted to plant strawberries for a while, but seeds for those are hard to get your hands on."

"Do you take care of this by yourself?" Marinette asked.

"Tikki helps," Nino said with a shrug. "But she taught me pretty much everything I know."

Marinette cocked her head to the side. "Are they your parents?"

"No," Nino said, shaking his head with a small laugh. "But they raised me since I was a kid. People die easily these days with the food shortage. You know how it is."

No, I don't, Marinette thought to Herself. She hadn't seen much of this outside world yet since they'd been constantly running further from the palace, but the things She had heard of so far were worse than She could have ever expected.

Food shortages, the brutality of the soldiers that were supposed to be protecting the people. Had all these things happened under Her father's reign while they lived comfortably away from all of it? Marinette had come to feel even more guilt as more stories were told to Her.

Marinette shut Her eyes tightly for a moment, sending up a prayer to the gods and wishing for a bountiful harvest for these people. At this moment, She didn't know what else She could do. Perhaps She wasn't a Princess anymore, but She was a Priestess. She could make a case on behalf of those in need.

Marinette wiped Her dirty hands off on Her skirt as She stood back to Her full height. "Is there anything you need help with?" She asked Nino.

"What do you know about gardening?" Nino asked.

Marinette let out a nervous laugh. "Well, I-"

"Princess."

The sound of his voice made Her go completely still. Her breath caught in Her throat. It took everything in Her to turn around and look at him. Maybe he wasn't actually there. Maybe Marinette was so sleep-deprived that She was starting to hear things. She couldn't contain Herself, though, wanting to see him.

Chat was standing there with his shoulder wrapped up in the same bandages from the night before. The soft breeze that danced through the grass also blew through his hair, which was messy and tangled. He had no time to react as Marinette moved quickly, a large smile spreading across Her face as She ran to him. She threw Her arms around his shoulders, practically jumping as Her feet lifted off the ground. Chat managed to catch Her with an arm around Her waist, planting his feet into the ground to steady himself.

"Uh, I don't think tackling the patient is the best thing to do right," Nino said, standing behind them, hand raised too late to stop Marinette from running at Chat.

Chat set Marinette back down carefully on Her feet. He was looking past Her at Nino, his hand moving up to rest on Marinette's shoulder. "Who's this guy?"

"I'm Nino," he said, stepping forward and holding out his hand. Tentatively, Chat shook it. He was clearly beginning to deem Nino not to be a threat, but Marinette knew he was still being cautious. Nino offered a friendly smile. "Nice to actually meet you."

Marinette pushed Her way back into the conversation. "Chat, what are you doing out here," she said. It dawned on Her at that moment that the only thing covering his body were his pants and the bandages over his wounds. Marinette lowered her head, looking away from him. She shrugged his robe off of Her shoulders, tossing it over his head. "You still be inside resting."

"You just tackled him two seconds ago," Nino pointed out again.

"Don't worry about me, Princess," Chat said. He stretched his arms to the sky once he had the robe on, letting out a pained groan. "I'll be in better shape in no time."

Nino tilted his head to the side. "Princess?"

Chat frowned. He leaned down his mouth level with Marinette's ear. "You didn't tell these people anything, right?"

"No," Marinette answered in a harsh whisper.

Chat smiled at Her, mockingly patting Her head. "Good girl." Marinette smacked his hand off of Her. She glared up at him as Chat stood back up to this full height. "Are your other friends around?"

"Why are you asking him that?"

It took Marinette a moment to realize that Chat was not the one asking that question. Chat had turned around in a way that put him between Marinette and the newcomer. Marinette had recognized Plagg's voice-

"You could just ask me," Plagg continued.

"You," Chat said, mouth hanging open in shock.

-And apparently, Chat had recognized him as well.

In the few moments that Chat and Plagg spent staring each other down, Marinette had no idea what would happen next. They were both glaring at each other, shoulders tense. Nino seemed not to have a clue of what was going on either, just shrugging when Marinette looked to him for an explanation.

The moment ended quickly though. Plagg was the first one to start laughing, Chat followed suit, and soon they were hugging and clapping one another on the back.

"You're so lucky I'm the one that managed to find you and your friend," Plagg said.

"I know and thank you for that," Chat said, setting a hand on top of Marinette's head. "I would have died if you left me in this one's care."

"Hey!" Marinette tried to duck out from underneath Chat's hand, but he pulled Her into him with one arm, crushing Her against his side.

Plagg chuckled. "Wanna explain to me what you're doing all the way out here?"

Marinette wondered if Chat would be honest. She had kept their story mostly quiet, not knowing what was and wasn't safe to say, but it seemed as though Her guard trusted these people.

"You wouldn't believe me if I said I was heading to the capital to visit my family?" Chat asked.

"Not if you're getting shot at by fire tribe soldiers, no," Plagg said, shaking his head.

"Plagg!" Tikki shouted from the house. She was standing on the front porch waving at them to come inside.

"Let's go in and eat," Plagg said. "Then we'll talk."

Nino followed after Plagg as they headed towards the smell of Tikki's delicious cooking. Chat was about to follow after them as well, but Marinette grabbed his arm, holding him back. He didn't try to fight against her hold, turning around to look at Her. Marinette didn't let go of his arm. "Are you sure you're alright?" She asked. "You don't need to sleep more? Maybe you should sleep more."

"I can assure you, Princess, I'm fine," Chat said, earnestly. Chat took hold of the hand that was gripping on his forearm. His fingers wrapped tightly around Her own as his brows furrowed together with concern. "What about you? When was the last time you slept, huh?"

Marinette looked away from him, eyes locked on the ground. She tried to slip Her hand from his grasp, but Chat tightened his hold and pulled Her closer to him. He bent down, eyes filled with scrutiny. "If you have to think about it that much, Princess, it's probably been too long."

"I'm fine," Marinette said, shrugging Her shoulders. Her voice grew quieter, eyes still not meeting his gaze. "Besides, how could I sleep when you were injured like that."

A dopey grin appeared on Chat's face. "Aw, you really care about me that much, Princess?" he asked. "Goodness, well, I'm flattered."

Marinette finally managed to wrench her hand from him. "Oh, don't flatter yourself too much," She huffed as She began storming off to the house.

"Oh, come on," Chat said, jogging a little to catch up with Her. "Don't get mad just because of that. I'm still injured-" he threw his arm around Her shoulders as he reached Her "-I might die if you wound me like that."

Marinette scoffed, crossing Her arms over Her chest as they continued to make their way into Tikki and Plagg's home.

She had already said as much as She would dare out loud, but it was still the best thing in the world to see him awake and walking, and acting like his old self.

----------------------

Luka had never really been one for early mornings. He preferred to stay up late at night, staying out under the night sky and waiting for shooting stars to pass by overhead.

Luka now preferred to stay inside and lock out the stars. The deep blue and inky black did nothing but remind him of someone he knew he should forget. But you couldn't get rid of the stars or the sky, so the thoughts of Her remained burned into his mind.

He was awake now though, standing on the same spot on the parapets he seemed to return to every day. In just a few hours, Luka would stand before the kingdom. Part of him knew that he'd be wearing a stolen crown and sitting on a stolen throne. These things weren't really his, but he would be using them. They were nothing more than tools to finally do some good for this kingdom.

As whispered voices continued to grow louder as they got closer to him, Luka grew more irritated. He didn't turn around, knowing who it was that was approaching him.

"My lord," Felix said.

"What is it, Felix," Luka grumbled, turning around. Nathaniel was standing there by his advisor's side. The soldier's eyes were downcast and the man didn't exactly seem connected with reality. Luka stepped forward. "You have news of the Princess?"

"Yes," Nathaniel said, nodding slowly. His voice was quiet. "I- We- We did find them, but... There was- there was-"

"The Princess is dead," Felix spoke, interrupting Nathaniel. "An arrow intended for General Noir missed and struck Her instead. Our soldiers had to subdue and kill Noir as well soon after."

Luka narrowed his eyes at Felix. He didn't seem to show any signs of lying, but he had every reason to. It wasn't surprising that Felix was so calm speaking of his brother's death.

Luka and Felix both turned their eyes to Nathaniel. "Is this true?" Luka asked.

Nathaniel remained silent and still for a long while. Felix was bearing down on him, and Luka could sense the pressure and tension that he was placing on his subordinate. Eventually, Nathaniel slowly nodded. "Yes," he said. "The Princess and General Noir are dead."

Not waiting for anything else to be said, Luka moved past the two men and made his way towards the stairs. Even if this was a lie, Chat and the Princess wouldn't be coming back. There was no way Chat would risk it for either of them.

He clenched his fists at his side as he walked, not waiting to see if they were following him and not wanting to turn back. "Let's finish preparing for the coronation."