BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Marinette's eyes shot open when she heard the alarm and she tried to sit up but was held down by Kagami's arm that was laying across her stomach and Chloe's head that was resting on her shoulder.

'I must be a very deep sleeper because how did I not feel this?' Marinette thought to herself.

Marinette shrugged Chloe off her shoulder and removed Kagami's arm from her stomach. The actions caused the two girls to wake up.

"Good morning you two!" Marinette said as she crawled from between her two friends and got off the bed.

"Morning. What time is it?" Chloe asked as she ran a hand through her messy bed hair.

"Just gone six o'clock. It's Monday." Marinette replied

"Oh! It's your first day!" Kagami jumped out of bed with a look of excitement on her face, "we must get you ready!"

"What?"

"Don't look so shocked Mari-Bug. We're gonna help you look amazing for your first day of school. Now hurry up and go shower and brush your teeth so we can get your hair and stuff sorted" Chloe ordered as she started to push her out of the room.

Marinette laughed, "ok, ok sheesh! I'm going. I'll be out in a bit then"

The plan was for them to set off at 7 o'clock so that they would make it to Collège Sévigné by 07:20 am so that she would have enough time to get accustomed to her room and get her timetable and anything else she needs.

Chloe and Kagami remained true to their word of making her look nice and presentable for her first day. They didn't go all out but she still looked nice. Kagami had straightened her hair and did a half up half down style with some parts of the tied-up hair braided with some bobby pins to hold the hair in place. Chloe did a light amount of natural makeup and added some lip gloss. It looked good along with her uniform. She still couldn't get over how comfy it was.

It was a shame that her two friends couldn't come with her and her parents to drop her off at Collège Sévigné since they too had school to attend and if they came, they'd be extremely late after coming back. It was quite a teary goodbye between the three friends. Chloe had demanded for Marinette not to cry or else she would ruin her makeup. Marinette laughed. She missed her friends already and the car hadn't even driven off yet. They promised to face time and text as much as they could and whenever they were allowed to, they'd visit her at her dorm. The most she would probably see them is during an Akuma attack.

Marinette kept on waving at Kagami and Chloe until she could no longer see them. She turned back around and leaned back on her seat and let out a small sigh. She felt Tikki and Plagg tap her through her pocket. She looked down and the two of them both gave her reassuring smiles and she couldn't help but smile back at them.

"You excited sweetheart?" Tom looked at her through the rearview mirror with a smile.

"I'm both excited and nervous. I have a good feeling about this school though. I do hope that the people will be nice there" Marinette replied.

"I'm sure they will. I've read the reviews about the school and they're pretty good to me. Am sure that you'll be fine. But still, you should be careful"

"Don't worry mama. I will be."

Since the road wasn't so busy this early in the morning, they made it to Collège Sévigné the time they planned to. Tom took the two suitcases out of the boot and Sabine took out the box that had Marinette's sewing machine in it along with a bag that had some fabrics. Marinette was rather happy when she was told that she was allowed to bring it.

When they began walking to the main entrance, Marinette looked at the main building in awe. It was much bigger than she thought it would be. She can't imagine what the rest of the school will look like. The inside was just as nice. It was elegant and it gave a feeling of comfort. I didn't have a bland look and at the same time, it wasn't over the top. She liked it.

Then, they were greeted by a girl who looked Marinette's age. She was slim and slightly taller than her and she had long dark blonde hair that was tied into a braid that hung over her shoulder. She had green eyes and a friendly smile as she made her way over to them.

"Good morning. My name is Allegra Giroud. You must be Marinette Dupain-Cheng right?" said Allegra.

What threw Marinette off guard was that Allegra greeted her in English.

"Umm, y-yes that's me." At least she'd perfected her English two years ago.

Allegra grinned and took the ravenette's hand and shook it gently, "it's nice to meet you. I have been instructed by Mrs Jermaine to take you to her. Follow me"

"Thank you," the family of three said in unison.

They had to go to the second floor. Thankfully the school had a lift so Tom and Sabine wouldn't have to worry about carrying Marinette's things up the stairs.

They walked past a few classrooms and Marinette scanned her eyes around as much as she could so that she could become somewhat familiar with the place. They eventually came to a wide platinum white door with a wooden label that read: Headmaster's Office: Mrs Jermaine.

Allegra knocked thrice on the door and a voice answered for them to come in.

The four of them walked into the office and were greeted by a very smartly dressed middle-aged looking lady with mocha skin, shoulder-length black locs with blonde highlights and had dark brown eyes. She had a kind smile as she watched them come in.

"Ah, Marinette Dupain-Cheng I assume?" Mrs Jermaine said as she stood up so that she could reach over her large desk to shake the small girl's hand. Mrs Jermain was quite tall herself. Around 5'9 or 5'10 if Marinette had to guess.

"Yeah, that's me. Thank you for accepting me here. I'm really grateful for that" Marinette said as she shook the headmistress' hand.

"Well, we are happy to have you. I wasn't really looking for any scholarship students this far into the year, but I must say, with your application and the recommendations I was sent about you, I was very impressed. I know that I am not going to regret my decision."

Tom and Sabine both smiled proudly at the compliments of their daughter. They were so proud to see how far she's come. Even after everything her old class put her through. They were happy that there were smart, kind and competent people out there for their daughter. It's what she needs.

Marinette flushed at the woman's praise, "Thank you, Mrs Jermaine. I promise you won't regret it."

"That's what I like to hear," Mrs Jermaine smiled a looked towards Marinette's parents, "I take it you are Marinette's parents. I must say, I can tell that you have raised this young woman well,"

"Yes. I am Tom Dupain and this is my Wife Sabine Cheng. We too are very proud of her!" Tom placed a hand on Marinette's shoulder with a wide smile.

Sabine nodded in agreement, "She's come so far. She's gone through difficult times but we think that this school will be great for her final year. We've looked into this place and liked what we saw."

Allegra wondered what he meant by difficult times. She found this Marinette girl pretty interesting. Even though she's hardly said a word to her, "We'll make sure that her final year is amazing. You'll defiantly have a story to tell once you leave. every student who attends here normally does."

"Yes, Allegra is one of our brightest students, especially in music and physics."

"Really? Then maybe you can help me with physics? It's my weakest science." Marinette chuckled nervously.

Allegra smiled. Maybe befriending this girl won't be so hard after all, "Sure thing!"

"Right, I have your key card here for you and your timetable for your lessons," Mrs Jermaine said as she pulled out a brown envelope that had the things she listed inside, "you are quite lucky that you came when you did. We only have two dorm rooms left since quite a few students decided to move in this year"

Marinette smiled and took the envelope, "Thank you so much"

"no problem. I'm sure Allegra can show you where your dorm block is. Is there anything you need before you get yourself settled?"

Marinette shook her head, "I think I'm alright for now. Thanks again!"

"That's quite alright. Enjoy your first day at Collège Sévigné"

"I'm sure I will" The four of them left the headmistress' office.

"Well, I guess it's time for us to leave. We'll be needing to open the bakery soon" said Tom.

"That's ok guys. I can handle all this stuff" said Marinette.

"And I can help her" Allegra offered.

"You are so kind Allegra. Thank you so much," said Sabine. She then turned to Marinette, "I'm going to miss you so much my little blossom." she pulled Marinette in for a hug

Marinette hugged her back, "I'll miss you guys too,"

Tom also joined in the hug and Allegra smiled at the interaction. She almost felt like she was intruding a bit.

The tree finally pulled away from each other and Sabine wiped away a stray tear, "Right, we don't want to hold you any longer from settling in. be sure to call and text when you can each day so we know you're alright ok?"

"I promise. Have a safe ride back home"

After a final hug goodbye, Tom and Sabine left the building.

"Your parents seem really nice," Allegra said as she watched the couple leave.

"Yeah. They've always been so good to me"

"That's sweet. So, what dorm block are you staying in?"

"Dorm block?" Marinette asked

Allegra nodded, "yeah. There are five rooms in each block. I'm in a block with three other boys. They wouldn't normally do that but I was pretty late moving in this year. But they're actually my closest friends. Well, one took a lot longer to warm up to any of us but he eventually came around in his own way."

"I see. Well, I'm in room R5 in the...Rose block?" Marinette replied with a confused face when she read the name of her block, "the blocks are named after a flower? That sounds like what they do in primary school when they name classrooms."

Allegra chuckled, "yeah. All dorm blocks are named after flowers. It was an idea that came up in the school council a few years ago the same year Mrs Jermaine became the head of the school. She's all for reasonable unoriginal ideas so she allowed it" she then had a look of realisation, "Hey wait, R5. You're in my block!"

Marinette smiled, "I guess I am. That's a relief. Introductions won't be as awkward then"

"You'll be fine. C'mon! let's get you to your room then I can introduce you to the boys and show you around"

When the girls finally arrived, Marinette used her key card to unlock her door. She was rather impressed when she walked in. It wasn't overly massive of course, but it was slightly bigger than her room and came with an ensuite. There was a double bed, a reasonably sized desk with a small lamp, a closet, etc. all the standard things you would see in a bedroom. She wished that there was a balcony in the bedroom, however, each block came with a balcony for each resident to share per block and it was just outside her door so that was fine.

"Where should I put this?" Allegra asked, gesturing to the box she was holding.

"Oh, uh, just put it on the desk. It's got my sewing machine in it"

Allegra nodded and did as told, "you like to design stuff?"

"Yeah. I want to be a fashion designer with my own big brand and everything. I've done a few commissions. nothing too big" as nice as Allegra seemed, Marinette only knew her for less than an hour and she wasn't just going to trust her right off the bat enough to reveal that she is MDC.

A while after Allegra left and after taking a few things out of the suitcases, Marinette decided that she would finish the rest later. She wanted to take a look around the school with whatever time she had left before her tutor period.

Marinette left her room so she could go and find Allegra but she ended up bumping into something. Well, someone.

"Whoa! You alright there?"

Marinette looked up and flushed a little. Both in embarrassment and at the handsome guy before her.

He was tall with an athletic figure, fluffy chocolate brown hair, tan skin and dark blue eyes. The end of his blazer sleeves were folded and his tie was tied up shorter than it probably should have been according to the uniform policy.

"Um, s-sorry about bumping into you. I'm a bit of a clutz." Marinette chuckled nervously.

The boy flashed his brilliant white teeth at her and let out a chuckle of his own, "eh, no worries. I don't mind when cute girls bump into me."

Marinette's face reddened further and that earned her another chuckle from the brunette.

"Claude! Flirting with the new girl already. Ugh, why do I even sound surprised?" Allegra, who'd just come out of her room, scolded.

"I-It's ok Allegra," said Marinette.

Allegra huffed, "well, I see you've met the dummy of the group already. This is Claude Hart. Claude this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng"

"Pleasure to meet you Marinette," said Claude. He then realised what Allegra said before the introduction and made a look of mock offence, "how dare you! I'm not dumb"

"You act like it though. You're what people call dumb smart"

Marinette turned around when she heard another person's voice.

It was another boy. Another handsome one in fact. He was about an inch taller than Claude. He had an athletic figure, similar to Claude's but his form was more obvious through his uniform. He was black and had dark brown eyes and he had small dimples on his cheeks that you would only notice when he talked. He had headphones resting around his neck.

Also, were all the boys in this school really good-looking or was it just these two? She was yet to see any other students.

Claude rolled his eyes, "shut up Allan."

Allan smirked and shoved his hands in his pockets, "Relax man."

Marinette could feel herself smile a little and then felt it drop when she realised that Allan reminded her of Nino a little bit. Allan seemed like a laid-back and chill guy but still seemed like a funny guy when he wanted to be.

"Before you two begin to bicker, Allan, this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Marinette, this is Allan Mensah-Monet," said Allegra

Allan held out his hand for her to shake, "Nice to meet you. I'm guessing you're now occupying the last room in this block"

Marinette shook his hand and nodded, "nice to meet you too, and yes, I am taking the last room. It's my first day here."

"You're a newbie huh? I thought I didn't see you around here," Claude slung an arm around Marinette's shoulder, "Well then shortcake, I will be honoured to give you a quick tour before tutor period then"

"Shortcake?" Marinette parroted as she looked up at him with a quirked brow at the nickname.

"Yeah. You're short and you seem sweet. Cakes are sweet. So Shortcake suits you perfectly for a nickname!"

"I'm not that short... You're just tall!" Marinette pouted. Oh who was she kidding? She was only 5'0.

Claude let out a small laugh, "sure whatever you say shortcake. So, that tour?"

"Um, I think Allegra was assigned to do that" Marinette replied.

"Yeah Claude, I was assigned to do that," The blonde smirked as she pulled Marinette away from him.

"What harm is it if I get to show her around?"

"It was my task, not yours. I get to show Marinette around. You'll probably just flirt with her anyway" Allegra shot back with her arms folded over her chest

"No, I won't!"

"Yes, you will!"

Marinette watched with raised brows as the two began to bicker back and forth about who would show her around.

"Well, would you look at that? Your first day and you already have two people fighting over you" Allan chuckled.

Marinette giggled a little. She found it odd that people were arguing over her. The only time she's seen this was from Chloe and Kagami during the early stages of their friendship group forming when she invited them out to the movies. They bickered over who would sit next to her. She usually prefers to sit at the end of the rows in the cinema but she sat between them before a catfight would break out.

"Are they usually like this?" Marinette asked

"Sometimes. But it's just banter. We've been friends for years. We kinda built a sibling bond with each other. Those two have known each other since primary school though." Allan replied.

"So you met them here?"

Allan nodded, "yep. I moved here from the UK."

"Ah yes I can hear the accent," Marinette giggled, "so you guys met during your first year then?"

"Yeah. I don't even remember how I became friends with them in the first place. We just started hanging out. Then we met Felix a while later. He moved from London to here too."

"Felix?"

"Yep. His room is opposite yours. He's...an interesting character to most. I'll put it that way. He's not a bad guy, but he may take time in getting used to you, but he'll come around. I'm letting you know now because he may come off as a bit rude when you're introduced. It took him ages to tolerate us. But he came around eventually. Especially since we're in the same dorm block. That, and Claude would sometimes just drag him over to hang with us."

'Must be the person Allegra was telling me about earlier' Marinette giggled at that, "Well, thanks for the heads up. I'll keep that in mind."

Marinette turned her attention back to Claude and Allegra who were still arguing.

"Hey, hey, hey! Why don't you both show me around?" Marinette suggested.

The pair stopped their arguing and looked at the ravenette and an amused-looking Allan.

"It's a good idea. Heck, I'll tag along. We can get to know her a bit on the way" Allan said with a small shrug of his shoulders.

"Eh, it's better than nothing. What do you say Allegra?" said Claude.

"Fine," Allegra sighed, "but we're going with the route that I had planned. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am" the two boys replied with a mock salute.

Marinette couldn't help but giggle at their antics and the relationship that she could see between the three. Even though she wasn't ready to fully trust them yet, she had a feeling that she would get along really well with these guys. She's yet to meet Felix though.

"Um, will Felix be joining us at all?" Marinette asked.

"Nah. He's usually at the library at this time. But you'll meet him eventually. Now then, "Claude began excitedly, "on with the tour!"

And off they went.