Our Tale As Old As Time

Chapter 2

           Marinette'seyes fluttered open as she sat up in the yellow grasses with a yawn. Wait,where was she? A few minutes ago, she had been battling with an akuma asLadybug. Now she was sleeping in a meadow? Where was Chat Noir? The girl wascompletely lost. Glancing down at her clothes, she was no longer in hersignature red and black suit, but in a pink dress with a black undershirt, anda white apron. Mari reached behind her head to touch her hair. The deep blue-blackstrands had been pulled back into a single low ponytail that was tied off witha red bow. When had she changed clothes? Too many questions, too little answers.Marinette got to her feet and dusted off her dress. Okay Marinette, pullyourself together. As she peered around the field, the teen saw a familiarold cottage. Where had she seen that house before? Mari didn't have enough timeto ponder about it more when she heard a horse whinny in the distance. Shelooked in the direction it came from and in mere seconds a large flaxenchestnut draft horse was charging toward her with a cart. Was she experiencing Dejavu or something? That was when it clicked. The akuma she had just been fightinghad a thing for fairytales. When her powers struck Chat Noir, he had vanishedinto thin air, and now she knew why! He had been sent into a fairytale! Fromher perspective, now she had been too. Now, she knew why this all felt sofamiliar, this was a scene from a fairytale, more specifically Beauty and theBeast. How was she supposed to get out of this? Tikki was no where to be found,so Marinette didn't have her Ladybug powers.

"The only way out of this is most likely to reach the happily ever after. That's it I need to get to the happily ever after! How did Beauty and the Beast end again?" It had been so long since Mari had just sat down and watched a Disney movie that she couldn't remember the specific moments that led up to the ending of Beauty and the Beast. Her thoughts were interrupted when she remembered that a horse was charging her. "Woah! Woah!" She yelled waving her arms above her head. The horse dug in his heals and skid to a halt in front of her. It was a big animal, and Marinette was truly intimidated by his size. What was the name of the horse in Beauty and the Beast again? Marinette wracked her brain for the answer and surprisingly found it the longer she thought about her favorite fairytale, excluding Mulan of course. "Philippe!" What happened again after Philippe returned to the house with the cart? The pieces began to fall into place for her again. She was supposed to ride Philippe to the castle to rescue her father. Wait was her father in the fairytale as well? Marinette shook the thought away as she unhitched the cart from Phillipe and took hold of the reins. The girl had never ridden a horse before and since Philippe was so tall, if she fell it would be a long way down. What was she talking about, she was Ladybug, she had put herself in far more dangerous situations, riding a horse shouldn't be too difficult. With a new-found set of courage, Mari boosted herself up onto the horse's back with the cart. It was a new feeling to be sitting on the back of a horse and she had no idea what she was doing. "Uhm.....? Heeyah?" Mari questioned allowed as she flicked the reins on the back of the animal's neck. The horse didn't move except when he turned his ears back to her to signal his confusion. "Get up." Mari tired again with a kick of her heels this time. This time it worked. Marinette jolted backwards as Philippe's muscles flexed and loosened into a walk. She yelped and pulled back on the reins trying to not fall over or off onto the ground. Philippe halted abruptly, throwing Marinette into his neck. She took a moment to regain her composure and balance. "I'm sorry Philippe. Bear with me. I've never ridden a horse before." The teen stated petting him along his neck tenderly. Phillipe snorted before dropping his head and shaking his mane briefly. This horse had personality. "Alright come on." Marinette straightened up and clicked to the horse with a gentle kick. Phillipe snorted again as he raised his head and began to walk. Using her reins Mari steered him toward the woods. Ignoring the minor hiccup from earlier, the rest of the ride went smoothly. As they rode along, the two could feel the wind getting progressively colder and it wasn't long before Mari was shivering. Holding her shoulders tightly she tried to warm herself back up, to no avail. At least until she felt the familiar feeling of magic run over her body. What was happening? Glancing over her shoulder Marinette saw a red cloak take shape over her. Relived to have some sort of warmth, Marinette flipped up the hood. She couldn't help but feel a little bad for Philippe. She was sure the horse was absolutely freezing, but he carried on without a fuss, though she could tell he was frightened by the forest just as much as she was. Mari's eyes wandered her surroundings until they landed on the tower of the castle up ahead in the tree line. "Let's go Phillipe." Mari flicked the reins again with a gentle kick into the equine's side. The powerful animal quickly stepped up his pace into a trot. It wasn't as bouncy as Marinette had anticipated which was a blessing because she was sure she'd fall off if he had a bouncy gait. The girl's heart fluttered with butterflies as the castle grew closer and closer. The chill winds blew, and the thunder cracked as the trees whistled in fear. The beast wasn't terrifying in the film, but this was a fairytale brought to life. This was terrifying. Upon seeing the gate, Marinette slowed Philippe to a walk before stopping him a foot from the iced over metal. On the other side of the gate there wasn't a hat like she had expected, but a frozen baguette. That was strange. That's when it hit her. Belle had gone to the castle in search of her father leaving behind his hat. If in this storyline, Marinette was Belle, then her father was in the castle. It made sense that he didn't leave a hat, but a loaf of bread instead. Coming to this realization that it wasn't the character that she had to save, but her real father that was locked in that cold gloomy dungeon. Marinette dismounted not expecting the drop to be so far, tripping over her cloak and stumbling into the snow. Just in her typical fashion, though she was the princess of this fairytale, she was definitely still Marinette. Clumsy and energetic as ever. Her mind didn't doddle on that fact however as she leapt to her feet and pushed through the gate. Mari didn't bother to pick up the baguette as she wrapped the cloak tighter around herself and ran to the large castle doors. So far none of the other characters had been changed, only she and her father had been brought into the story as it had seemed. The thought of meeting the true Beast from Beauty and the Beast frightened her. In honesty, the animated character didn't bring her fear, but the aspect of meeting the character in a reality that felt so real was to be truly terrifying. The doors were massive and heavy with a creaking sound as they slid open. It was even bigger on the inside than Marinette had anticipated. The halls even darker than in the scene. She began to wonder the halls calling out for her father, but also subconsciously watching for Lumiere and Cogsworth. The familiar glow in the stairwell, gave her hope that she was on the right track. With every step she felt her limbs become heavier and heavier as she drew closer to the dungeons at the top of the stairs. Mari knew what was coming, she was about to meet the Beast. Little did she know that her favorite cat was the beast that waited in the shadows for her appearance.