A/N: Outfit for the chapter.
Hairstyle:
Françoise Dupont Highschool - Courtyard
Today were the tryouts for the fencing team. Lily had come by to watch Adrien practice. But Lily also had a feeling that Marinette might show up. Also, she knew a certain female fencer would be arriving today and she was excited to see her. At the moment, she was on the bench, watching everyone getting into two lines. Marinette was in the tryout's lines.
"She hasn't gotten over Adrien huh?" Trixx whispered, hiding in her hair.
"No." Lily whispered back.
Mr. D'Argencourt paces between two lines of students. The fencers and the tryouts.
"I am the fencing master, Mr. D'Argencourt. As I'm sure you're aware, we have only one open spot on the team this year." Armand stops and faces the tryouts. "So, in order to select the best possible candidate, I will observe the beginners performing a number of attacks on the experienced students."
Marinette looks around. "Where's Adrien?"
Lily who was beside her, scoffed. "Typical. You can't even do something without your mind going straight towards him. I bet you're only trying out cause he's into fencing."
Marinette shot her a dirty glare for calling her out.
"Just to remind you, I'm his girlfriend. Remember that." Lily remarked.
Marinette huffed and walked away.
"Get into position." Armand says as he gestures with his arm to his.
Just then a fencer approaches Lily. "Hey, Lily." The fencer lifts up his helmet to reveal Adrien.
"Oh, hey Adrien!" Lily smiles.
"Adrien?!" Marinette snapped her head towards the duo with a with a wide grin upon hearing her obsession's name. However, that smile morphed into a scowl when she realized the two were interacting.
"Hey, it's nice to see you." Lily told her boyfriend.
"You too. I thought you'd tryout for Mr. D'Argencourt's fencing team since you usually come here to watch us fence. But I'm guessing that you're here to watch me." Adrien says.
"I did do some fencing while I was in Italy, but now I'm very focused on fashion designing," Lily gestured to her sketchbook, "Not to mention that I have other responsibilities." She whispered the last part.
"Gotcha." Adrien understood.
"Adrien!" Mr. D'Argencourt calls his name sharply.
Adrien jumps and quickly turned to him. "Yes, Mr. D'Argencourt?"
"You can chat with Miss Rossi after tryouts are over. Pair up with Miss Marinette," Mr. D'Argencourt instructs.
Adrien looks over at Marinette, who is grinning in a frightening way and waving at him in a fast manner. He gulps. "C-Cant't I be paired with someone else?" He asks his fencing teacher.
Marinette frowns at this.
"What is the issue with Miss Marinette?" Mr. D'Argencourt asks the blonde.
"I just... don't feel comfortable with her..." Adrien rubs the back of his neck, not even glancing at bluenette stalker.
Marinette is extremely hurt and crushed that he didn't wanna pair up with her because she still made him uncomfortable.
"Alright then," Mr. D'Argencourt nods in understanding. "Pair up with Jaques," He gestures to a random boy.
Adrien happily pairs up with Jaques, and Marinette nearly tears up.
"And Miss Marinette, pair up with Alice." Mr. D'Argencourt points to a random blonde girl.
Marinette quickly wipes her pathetic tears and reluctantly pairs up with the girl, casting Adrien a crestfallen look, but he's completely acting like she doesn't exist.
"Get into your starting position!" Mr. D'Argencourt says.
As everyone does so perfectly, even the tryouts, Marinette has a slightly awkward position.
"Um, I don't feel like I'm doing this right." She told Alice.
"Seriously? You came for tryouts, yet you don't have the starting position locked down?" Alice was baffled.
"Um... Well..." Marinette was suddenly very aware of all the students looking at her with her position slightly wrong and her face heating up under her blush. "You see, it's just that..."
Alice sighs and rolls her eyes, sauntering over to her. "I'll help you."
"Okay." Marinette said.
"Bend your knees, then stretch your left foot back, turned outwards." Alice demonstrated the position.
Marinette hurriedly follows her instructions. "Now what do I do?"
"Now put your saber forward," Alice leans her forward, hesitantly putting her hand on her to do this. "Like this," She uses her other hand to guide the bluenette so her saber is pointing out, "And that's it," Alice pulls her hands away and returned to her previous position.
"Greet each other!" Mr. D'Argencourt crosses his saber arm over his chest and then snaps it out to his side.
Alice greeted Marinette with her saber, but she was too busy staring over at Adrien. "Hey, uh, Marinette, can you please focus and greet me back?" She requested, annoyed.
"Huh? Oh yeah, right!" Marinette does a swift greeting back to Alice with her saber.
"En garde! Prêt, allez! (On guard! Ready, go!)" Mr. D'Argencourt yells.
Everyone began fencing while Lily was busy sketching a fencing outfit in her sketchbook.
Marinette's opponent, Alice, had already taken an early advantage. Her strong attacks and expert foot work made her almost impossible to compete with.
Marinette was no slouch either, however. Her natural athleticism made up for her lack of skill, and she was able to keep up with Alice for the most part, though she could not seem to land a good hit on her.
Marinette was starting to get annoyed. Her opponents' skill seemed to have no limit, and she was unable to land an attack on her. Meanwhile, Alice's skill was growing with each successful attack on her, and it didn't seem like she could be stopped. She was struggling, frustrated and feeling helpless in the face of Alice's skill.
"Go, Adrien!" Marinette heard her rival's voice.
The bluenette stalker glanced over to see Lily cheering Adrien on, and the blonde was enjoying it!
Marinette felt this strong, almost primal irritation at the sight of Lily and her cheering for Adrien. SHE wanted to be the one cheering him on, encouraging him.
"Can you please focus?" Alice glared at Marinette, noticing she wasn't even trying.
"Sorry," Marinette mumbled, her mind a million miles away. She tries to refocus, poorly fencing against Alice.
The hypocrite suddenly gets an idea.
Marinette backs away slightly to make it look like she is backing up from Alice, towards Lily, and she glances towards the designer, but then smiles at her opponent, looking as if she is distracted by the blonde.
Alice is focused only on the duel in front of her, not noticing Marinette's trick. As she backs away from Alice even further, Marinette glances back and sees she's getting closer to Lily, who is busy sketching.
Adrien, however, noticed Marinette (who was still fencing with Alice), backing up towards Lily. He gasps and runs forward, dropping his saber. "Lily!"
"Lily!" Tikki and Trixx whispered urgently.
Lily hums in confusion when she heard her two Kwamis and sees her childhood friend running towards her. She then gasped when she sees Marinette getting WAY too close to her. Quickly, she got up and took a few steps back before Adrien pulled her out of the way just in time as Marinette landed backwards on the bench.
However, the bluenette didn't seem to expect the sudden force and her back hit the bench hard. She moaned in pain and closed her eyes tightly as her back ached. She lifted her helmet, and her head started to spin.
Adrien lifts up his helmet. "Are you okay, Lily?!" He asks Lily in concern.
"Don't worry, I'm fine, Adrien." The brunette assured her boyfriend.
"I'm so sorry!" Alice lifts her helmet. "I didn't even notice Marinette was backing into you," She sympathetically told Lily.
"It's okay," She assures, picking up her fallen sketchpad as Adrien rubbed her back as if she had just gone through a traumatic experience.
"Miss Dupain-Cheng, what were you thinking? Why weren't you aware of your surroundings?!" Mr. D'Argencourt admonishes the stalker.
"I lost my balance!" She lied defiantly.
"Losing your balance almost got Lily hurt! What if you or Alice had accidentally injured her with your sabers?" Mr. D'Argencourt continues to reprove her.
The klutz knew Lily would've been okay if she had fallen on her and didn't even care if the hazel-green-eyed girl felt temporary pain. It was clear that the bluenette didn't care about Lily's physical or mental wellbeing. All she cared about was getting Adrien to notice her. Even if Lily got hurt (but not badly) in the process, it would be worth it for her as long as she got Adrien's attention.
Marinette glances at Adrien, who was glaring at her suspiciously. Instead of being pleased that he was looking at her, she felt nervous. She suddenly had no idea how to win back his favor. And his expression looked like he was furious at her for doing what she tried to do to Lily!
"Miss Marinette, I'm going to have to remove you from try-outs." Mr. D'Argencourt decided.
"An accident like this can never happen again on my watch. You can leave, because you're NOT getting a spot on the fencing team." Mr. D'Argencourt declared firmly.
"W-Wait, you mean I have NO chance of getting on to the fencing team at all?! This was my best chance to be with Adri-!" Marinette paused at seeing Adrien standing nearby with Lily. "I-I mean... this was my chance to become a great fencer!"
"Un grande schermidore? (A great fencer?)" Lily's brow arched.
"Dubito che lo sarà. (I doubt that she will be.)" Adrien commented.
"Well, try again next year." Mr. D'Argencourt retorts.
"N-Next year?!" Marinette stares at him in disbelief and horror. This was her one chance to join the best fencing team and she blew it!
"Hey, you!" A feminine voice suddenly yelled out.
Everyone looked over to see a figure in red fencing gear standing on the scoring box, carrying a red saber. Lily knew who this figure was. It was her friend, Kagami Tsurugi.
"Are you Mr. D'Argencourt, the fencing master? I wanna join your team." Kagami proclaimed to the man.
"Only the best is admitted here, you knave." Mr. D'Argencourt retaliated.
"And I was, everywhere I went." Kagami retorted.
"Part le fer! This whippersnapper has nerve!" Mr. D'Argencourt says as Kagami walked up to him. "All right! I may consider your admission; shall you defeat one of my students."
Kagami strode up to the silent students. "Which one of you is the best combatant?!"
All of the students shuffle around, looking at Adrien, who has picked up his saber.
"Adrien, please give our visitor a lesson in chivalry." Mr. D'Argencourt says.
Adrien smirks and puts down his helmet. "I shall, Master."
Kagami glances at Lily for a second who nodded in respect and Kagami nodded back.
Everyone was now gathered together, watching Kagami and Adrien face off. They were attached to the scoring box and standing beside it. Adrien touches his saber to Kagami's shoulder and the score box lights up green.
Kagami touches him with her saber and the red-light shines. Her and Adrien bow and walk apart. He bends his saber blade while she swung hers around, showing off her skills.
Marinette gasps. "Great. There goes any chance I had of making the team. This guy's obviously better than everyone." She whines.
"Girl," Lily harshly corrects Marinette, standing next to her. "She's a girl."
"And how would you know that?" Marinette narrows her eyes.
"If you weren't such a dunderhead, you can tell she's a girl by her chest area, and her voice. Just because her voice is muffled from her helmet doesn't mean she's a boy." Lily snapped at the bluenette stalker.
She stayed quiet, not having a response because she was too embarrassed, especially hearing some snickers around her.
"En garde! Prêt... allez!" Mr. D'Argencourt shouts.
Adrien and Kagami lunge at each other and both point buzzers go off at the same time.
"Simultané! Par un toucher! (Simultaneous! By a touch!)" Mr. D'Argencourt shouts.
Adrien and Kagami return to their starting points.
No one answered her, and she frowns.
"En garde! Prêt... allez!" Mr. D'Argencourt exclaimed.
Again, Kagami and Adrien lunge at each other, lighting up both sides of the points box.
"Uhh... Abstention!" Mr. D'Argencourt says.
"Wow, Mr. D'Argencourt wasn't able to tell who won." Lily commented.
"Yeah. I never expected that girl to be so good." Jaques agreed.
"She must have had a lot of training." Alice added.
Kagami then suggests that she and Adrien "do it the old-fashioned way", in order to have more freedom with their movements, which Adrien agrees to.
Marinette asks how they will be able to tell who hits first, but she's ignored, much to her dismay.
But when Lily asks the same question, one of the other students tells her that they must watch very carefully, getting Marinette angry.
Adrien and Kagami began their vicious duel, taking their battle up a set of stairs as the rest of the class follows them.
Marinette tried to see over them, but she couldn't. So she heads over to the other set of stairs.
"Is that all you can do?" Kagami spat at Adrien, currently having him pinned between her and the railing of the stairs.
The blonde then forces her off him and runs further upstairs, Kagami following after him.
"The fateful moment has arrived!" Mr. D'Argencourt is trampled by his students, and he grunts in pain.
"Sorry, Mr. D'Argencourt!" Lily apologized to him.
Adrien and Kagami are now fencing furiously. The former knocks her inside the library and they continued to fence, making a huge mess.
A book cart rolls out into the hallway. Lily yelped when she saw the incoming book cart and she and the others all flee. The book cart hits Marinette into the wall behind her, leaving her with a red, bruised face.
Lily and the others winced.
Library
Adrien and Kagami move back from each other.
"Let's finish this off!" Kagami says.
The duo lunge at each other, blades clashing. Kagami's saber touches Adrien's body while his own touches hers at the same time.
Kagami steps aside and turns Marinette. "Who got the first hit?! Who?!"
"Uhhh, I...!" Marinette stammered like an idiot as Lily appeared next to her.
Armand appears on the floor just then. "Who touched first? Tell us now!" He yelled Marinette.
"It was Kagami." Lily spoke up.
Armand turned to Lily with confusion, "Kagami? Who's Kagami?"
Lily smiled and walked over to the red fencer.
"This is Kagami Tsurugi." Lily introduced as she stood next to the red fencer who took off her helmet.
"Hello." Kagami greeted.
"Kagami is the only daughter belonging to a family of prestigious fencers. Her mother and grandfather were both world champions." Lily bragged.
"Really?" Mr. D'Argencourt asked, intrigued.
Kagami nodded, "Yes. I've traveled all over to compete in fencing competitions and won them too. I recently won a fencing competition in London." She replied.
"Interesting." Armand rubbed his chin.
"B-But are you sure that it was Adrien and not Kagami who hit." Marinette spoke up, trying to butter up to Adrien.
"No, it was definitely Kagami." Adrien confirmed as he lifted his helmet and turned to Kagami, "So you're the great fencer friend who Lily spoke of, right?"
Kagami nodded, "Yes, she is one of my good friends and spoke highly of you and the others." She said.
"I'm glad to finally meet you, Kagami. She was right that you're a great fencer." Adrien complimented.
Kagami giggled and turned to Lily, "You complimented me too much, Lily."
Lily smiled and shrugged.
Armand cleared his throat, "Well then, Miss Tsurugi, I officially welcome you to D'Argencourt Academy!" He declared.
Everyone clapped and cheered for Kagami. The said girl's cheeks turned a slight pink as she smiled.
"Congratulations, Kagami." Lily wrapped her arm around Kagami's shoulder.
"Thank you, Lily." Kagami thanked the brunette who smiled at her.
Lily was truly happy for Kagami. The girl deserved to be on the fencing team. It was a good thing she spoke up before Marinette made the call. Another Akuma attack was avoided. A very good thing indeed. Lily knew that fighting Riposte would have been a very hard Akuma to fight. But Kagami is now on the team and Marinette isn't. That was also another good thing to have happened today.
Meanwhile, Marinette was shocked. She was unable to join the fencing team. She wouldn't be able to spend any time with Adrien. But now this Kagami girl was able to get the spot on the team. She let out a sigh and left the crowd. Another plan to get together with Adrien failed. But she knows that there might be another chance. She'll just have to wait once more.
ns216.73.216.67da2
and then Add to home screen.