Across Oceans - Chapter One

Once upon a time, in a far away land, there was a bright and prosperous kingdom. It was located in a peninsula, making fishing and exporting simple for the townsfolk. Travelers of all kind gathered in the kingdom to trade and sell goods from distant lands. They specialized in different crafts such as apocatheries, agriculture, and, above all, their world-reknowned patisseries. This lively nation was ruled by the kind king, King Thomas, and his queen, Queen Sabine. They had one heir: their daughter, Marinette.

This kingdom and its people lived happily through the years under the rule of the monarchs. They were intelligent, capable of talking their way out of wars, and fair, never once using their power to extort from their people. They lived this way until the year Princess Marinette reached the age of sixteen, officially eligible as a bride to any noble suitors that might wish to court her.

"I don't like him," The young princess huffed as she crossed her arms in irritation.

"Oh, please, darling. At least try to get to know him. He comes from a nice family," Queen Sabine begged, shooting the young nobleman an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, Mama, but I don't like him. I don't even want to get married!" Marinette exasperated.

"Sabine, she's right. Maybe it's too early. After all, she only just turned sixteen hours ago. Can't we just enjoy the celebration for now and deal with this debacle later?" King Tom sighed.

Sabine thought for a moment before finally conceding to her daughter's wishes. She waved the young suitor away, dismissing him from the throne room.

"Thank you, Papa!" Marinette thanked happily, kissing her father's cheek. King Tom chuckled at his daughter's glee, while the queen rolled her eyes as she smiled wistfully at her family.

"Alright, alright. It's time to go out into the square," Queen Sabine stated, "The people have prepared something for you, dear."

Marinette smiled widely at the thought and quickly made her way out of the throne room as fast as she could in her high heels, distracted by her excitement that she didn't see a wrinkle in the velvet carpet which caused her to fall face first on the floor. Several of the ladies-in-waiting rushed to the princess' side, helping her up as delicately as they could, while the king and queen watched embarrassedly at their daughter's etiquette.

"Sorry!" Marinette exclaimed, her face red as she wiggled her way out of the grasp of her servants.

Marinette let out an air of excitement as she saw the millions of lights decorating the town's square. There were people bustling around, handing food and laughing amongst each other. There were red peonies and yellow marigolds embelleshing the shopfronts around. Her favorite music by her favorite singer was echoing through the city as the artist practiced for the night's events. As she looked down from the balcony, Marinette felt warmth spread through her. Her people were doing this just for her, and she couldn't be more grateful.

"Isn't it lovely, my little ladybug?" She heard King Tom ask behind her.

"Yes, it's wonderful, Papa!" Marinette answered with tears in her eyes.

"Don't cry, Marinette. It's not ladylike," Queen Sabine tutted behind her softly.

Marinette couldn't help it and burst into tears, embracing her parents tightly in gratitude.

"Thank you for everything, Mama, Papa," She thanked sloppily as fluids washed down her face.

"What are we going to do with you?" Queen Sabine sighed, taking a hankerchief from a lady-in-waiting and wiping down her daughter's face.

Marinette kept sobbing but stopped as she heard a clanking of metal approach. She turned to see what was making the sound and saw a knight come forward. It was Sir Nathanaël, a childhood friend of hers.

"Nate!" Marinette exclaimed, leaving her parents to hug her friend.

"Hello, Your Majesty," Nathanaël greeted gleefully as he reciprocated her embrace, "Happy birthday."

"Sir Nathanaël, glad to see you made it to the night's events," King Tom said as he watched the exchange between the two friends.

"Unfortunately, I'm not here to celebrate," The knight stated sullenly. Marinette's face fell as she saw her friend's mood go south. She let go of him and watched what he had to say. "If it's alright, I would like to have a word with the king for a few moments."

"Of course," King Tom answered seriously, following the knight into the throne room.

"Don't worry, Your Highnesses," Nathanaël said to the queen and the princess, "It's just a small matter that I need to discuss with the king. Please enjoy the rest of the festivities."

Marinette and Sabine nodded understandingly at the knight, a look of worry on their faces. They watched as the doors to the throne room close, exhaling concernedly. Marinette, in all her curiosity, raced up to the doors and eavesdropped through the cracks. Her mother debated with herself whether to stop her daughter, but decided to let it go because she wanted to know what was happening herself.

"...the pirate Chat Noir has issued a threat..."

"...security must be tightened..."

"...the princess must never know..."

Marinette couldn't hear very clearly as to what her father and friend were talking about, but caught on to the words "Chat Noir" and "threat," which was more than enough for her to fully understand what was happening.

Chat Noir was one of the very few adversaries that her father wasn't able to talk out of an altercation. The pirate had been threatening the kingdom for years, attacking small fishing boats and stealing from some of the businesses near the shore. He had never passed the port, however, merely choosing to conduct petty thievery. What was strange about this pirate was that no one had ever seen him or his ship or even his crew. At least, no one that was left to survive.

If Chat Noir was coming tonight, the very night of her birthday, to mainland, then she and her people would be in great danger. She needed to cancel the celebration.

"Mama, we have to-" Marinette started.

"All right, people of Paris! Are you ready to celebrate Princess Marinette's sixteenth brthday?" A booming voice asked from the square. The crowd cheered in bustling excitement.

"No!" Marinette thought, her eyes widening.

"Marinette, come now," Queen Sabine called, "The festivities are starting. The people prepared this for you. You have to come and watch."

"But-"

"No 'buts'! Your father and Nathanaël will be out soon, so come and enjoy while you still can," The queen interrupted.

Marinette sighed, hanging her head low as she realized there was no stopping the celebration. She hoped, in the heaviness of her heart, that the guards her father ordered to secure their safety could successfully protect them.

"Okay," Marinette answered reluctantly, making her way to her mother.

A servant quickly pulled up a plush, velvet chair to Marinette as she approached the balcony. The princess thanked the servant warily, eliciting a worried look from her mother who was next to her.

"Is everything alright, Marinette?" Sabine asked.

"Papa and Nate were talking about-"

"One, two, one, two, three, four," The singer counted before singing Marinette's favorite song.

"Isn't that lovely, Marinette? It's your favorite song!" Sabine gushed as her train of thought got diverted to the concert below them.

"Yes, Mama," Marinette hummed worriedly, deciding to let it go.

"What did I miss?" The king asked as he emrged from the throne room doors.

"The concert is started, Your Majesty," the royal butler answered.

Tom chuckled as he took a seat next to his family, but not before whispering something to the servant, prompting him to nod and discreetly exit the balcony. Marinette decided that her father said something about the impending pirate attack, making her sink into her seat some more.

"Where's Nate?" Marinette asked.

"Don't fret. He just has some knightly duties he needs to attend to tonight, but he did say that he was very sorry he couldn't stay longer," Tom answered with a smile. Marinette knew he was lying, but he didn't know that, so she nonchalantly nodded.

The rest of the concert went through smoothly, easing Marinette's doubts. She was eventually able to push out any worries in her mind, and was able to enjoy herself as she watched the entertainers down at the square and ate her favorite food that the royal chefs cooked for her.

All was well until the final act of the night. A singer by the name of Nino walked up the stage, and Marinette immediately knew that something was off. She had never seen the singer before in her entire life. She made it a point to meet the entertainers of the kingdom. Most of them began as relatively unknown peasants. The princess liked to follow their journey into fame. An event such as this would require years of struggle to be even considered to perform. Who was this Nino? Did he have something to do with Chat Noir's attack?

"Who is he, Papa?" Marinette asked in alarm.

"He's a performer from the neighboring kingdom, Nice. He's well-known there, and I thought you might like him," Tom answered.

Marinette exhaled in relief, watching the performer introduce himself.

"Hello, people of Paris! My name is Nino, and I have a special performance for all of you tonight," Nino called, making the crowd scream in excitement. He turned towards the balcony, sending chills down Marinette's back as she swore that he stared directly into her eyes. "This is for the fair Princess Marinette!"

The crowd cheered, but was immediately replaced with shrieks of panic as the lights illuminating the square were cut off.

"Guards, protect the princess!" King Tom yelled.

Sabine grabbed her daughter's arm and hugged her protectively, running towards the throne room. They were stopped by the king holding them back, placing them behind him protectively. Several shadowed figures emerged from the roofs, sliding down to the palace's balcony and the square, surrounding the people.

"Stay back!" The king ordered the figures as he pointed his sword at them. The guards on the balcony were already knocked out by the plethora of vagabonds showering down onto the area. Marinette squinted her eyes, trying her best to use the moonlight to see their enemies. She looked at one of the fallen guards near her feet and grabbed his sword, raising it at a figure approaching her menacingly.

"Don't come close," Marinette yelled as she saw the figure grin devilishly in the darkness.

"What a feisty princess," He laughed, taking a step towards the royal family.

"Don't touch her," The king boomed.

The figured snickered at the command, twitching his head at one of his comrades. Immediately, the king and queen were both knocked towards the ground.

"No!" Marinette exclaimed. She raised the sword again, pointing it at the four villains cornering her to the rails of the balcony.

"Leave her to me," The leader of the group said, approaching the princess. The three figures backed off instantly.

"Don't come close to me," Marinette exasperated as she felt tears run down her face.

"Oh, don't worry, Princess," Her enemy slurred, mocking her title as if it was venom dripping from his lips, "We'll treat you well."

The shadow launched himself at her, but the princess swung her weapon at him, making him take out his own sword in defense.

"Oh? She knows how to fight. How exciting," He laughed as the clang of their swords echoed above the screams of the people below the balcony.

"I'm no damsel in distress," Marinette seethed.

"Chat, we have to make this quick. The back up guards are coming," One of the figure's accomplices warned. Marinette's opponent let out an irritated tsk.

"Very well," Chat Noir replied, turning back to the princess, "Unfortunately, my dear, I'm going to have to cut our rendezvous short."

The pirate then started to fire attacks much too fast for the princess' limited repertoire of skill to keep up with. Before she knew it, she was tied up and gagged, a sack covering her head. The pirate carried her over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes, jumping from roof to roof. She didn't know where they were going, but she sensed that they were near the ocean, because the smell of salt and fish wafted through the cloth.

"Are you sure about this, Chat?" A female voice asked.

"Don't ask questions now, Alya," Her carrier grunted, "This is all part of the plan."

She felt the pirates stop and heard footsteps on wood. She guessed they were on a ship. With the cloth still over her head, she was thrown into a dark room aboard, and whatever light from the moon that had seeped through the sac disappeared completely as her captors slammed the door to the room shut.

Marinette felt hot tears fearfully run down her cheeks as she prayed to herself that her family and her people weren't harmed, effectively lulling herself to sleep as her many thoughts overwhelmed her brain.