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"You should wear the red sweater dress."
Kagami turned from her closet to look at the love of her life, framed with light pouring through the hallway window behind her.
"Do you really want to be the couple that wears matching outfits to this party?"
Marinette came into the room and held up the dress she had mentioned, draping it in front of Kagami and turning them both to face the mirror in their room. "It's our party. We can match if we want to."
Kagami watched Marinette's eyes bounce around the room. The closet, Kagami's legs, the dresser, the jewelry box, Kagami's waist, Kagami's shoulders and neck, the six other outfits laid out on the bed.
"Aren't you supposed to say 'lucky charm' before analyzing the situation?"
Marinette's eyes snapped back to hers. She blinked, and a grin took over her whole person.
"Why would I need to? I already have my lucky charm since you're right here."
Kagami turned around and leaned her forehead against Marinette's. Marinette hadn't grown an inch since the day they met, but Kagami had experienced a growth spurt and stood half a head taller than her wife.
"I'm the lucky one."
"You two are saps," Alix said from the hallway around a mouthful of dry cereal. She had the box under her arm. "Get dressed and get downstairs so I can stop answering the door for all the early people."
Kagami pulled on the sweater dress. When her head cleared the collar, Marinette shoved a belt in her face. She took it and put it on without comment.
"Who is here already besides you? The party doesn't start for an hour and a half," Marinette said. She selected a pair of shoes for Kagami from their closet and set them on the floor. Just as Kagami was about to slide one foot into place, Marinette shook her head and snatched the shoes up, not noticing Kagami wobbling in an attempt to not fall on top of her.
"I mean, Nath and Adrien only live across town. Did you really think Adrien would wait until the designated start time? When there are people who haven't met their daughter?"
"Oh, just those three?" Marinette asked. "They don't count! They're over here all the time." She stood on her tiptoes behind Kagami to brush her hair out of the way and fasten a necklace in place.
"Nathalie came with them. And Kagami, your mom got here just a minute ago and she scares me, so I'm gonna hang out up here until you're downstairs."
Marinette grabbed Kagami's hands, eyes shining but the rest of her features as neutral as she could manage. "You invited your mom after all?"
"I did." Some emotion bubbled in her chest, fizzing and pressing. Her mother hadn't said one way or the other if she was going to show up. "And she's... here."
Marinette threw her arms around Kagami's neck, giggling and wiggling and bouncing. It took Kagami a moment to hug Marinette back. The ease with which Marinette displayed her feelings would always leave her with a sense of awe.
The doorbell interrupted them. Marinette pecked a quick kiss on her cheek and pulled away.
"I guess no one listened to what time we told them to arrive," Marinette said. "Let's go say hello."
“Is that your cat?” Alix asked, nodding towards the rescue tabby that had climbed out from under the bed to stretch.
“No,” Kagami deadpanned.
Alix looked away from the cat to stare at Kagami for a minute. When the doorbell rang again, she blinked in surprise and laughed.
“You’re getting good at this ‘making jokes with humans’ thing, K,” she said. “Go answer the door. Imma introduce myself to the kitty.”
Kagami wrapped an arm around Marinette’s waist and started pulling her towards the hallway.
“Her name is Catra,” Marinette called over her shoulder. “She likes scritches under her chin, but you have to let her sniff your face before she’ll let you touch her. And if you want, there are treats on the dresser. She likes the-”
The doorbell rang again.
“Yeah yeah yeah, go answer the door,” Alix called, not even turning to look at them. Kagami glanced back and saw Alix laying on her stomach on the floor facing the cat, unmoving except for the hand bringing cereal from the box to her mouth.
When they got to the bottom of the stairs, Marinette said, “We’re never seeing Alix or Catra again, are we?”
“Probably not,” Kagami said, leaning over to kiss Marinette’s cheek. “Now, I’m going to steal little Emilie Agreste-Kurtzberg and use her to distract my mother from actual conversation.”
Marinette greeted Alya and Nino at the door, teasing them for not just walking in like usual. Behind them, Juleka, Luka, Rose, and Anarka were walking up the sidewalk. The Dupain-Chengs arrived next, and then Ivan, Mylene, and their triplets. By the time Max and Kim arrived, the party was in full swing. Marinette gathered everyone around the long dining room table and called for quiet.
"Thank you, everyone, for coming," Kagami said. She and Marinette stood hand in hand at the head of the table, facing a house full of their favorite people and a table full of food everyone had brought. "Ten years ago, Ladybug, Chat Noir, and their fellow heroes saved Paris, and the world, from Hawkmoth's reign. Ten years ago, everyone in this room took part in the final battle. When we-"
A small hand tugged at Kagami's skirt. She stopped and turned to see one of the Bruel triplets staring up at her.
"I wasn't there." With one fist still holding Kagami's skirt, she popped her other thumb in her mouth, wide eyes watching Kagami, expectant.
Kagami bit her lip to keep from smiling too widely. "You're right. You weren't there." She picked the little girl up, settling her on her hip and melting when the toddler’s head dropped to rest on her shoulder. "Ten years ago, most everyone in this room took part in the final battle. When we found ourselves victorious, our rejoicing was strong but short-lived. We had won. But we weren't done."
Here, Marinette reached out a hand to Adrien. He handed Emilie to Nath and came to stand at her side, bypassing her hand and pulling her into a side-hug.
"We found that we had yet to really heal. We all banded together to do just that. We rebuilt this city, every one of us." Kagami held out her hand to Luka, who was seated on her right. He stood and took her hand. Anarka next to him stood and took his hand and reached for Juleka's on her right. All the way around the table, every person stood and held hands with their neighbors. When the circuit had connected, Kagami continued.
"I think every one of us could list the things we've gained from the other people in this room, the ways we've all cared for each other over the years." Five or six agreements of various volumes interrupted her. "But I think the best thing we've given each other-"
Kagami stopped. Halfway down the table, between Max and Sabine, her mother was smiling.
Smiling. Her mother was smiling... at her.
Kagami turned to Marinette but found her vision blurry. She couldn't wipe away her tears with one arm supporting the child and the other hand connecting her to this chain of wonderful people, and she couldn't remember a single thing she was supposed to say next.
"The best thing we've given each other," Adrien said, reaching around Marinette to give Kagami's arm a quick squeeze, "is family. Family built on love. Thank you for supporting us for the last ten years. Thank you for being our family, for choosing to be our family."
Marinette pulled Kagami close and wiped the tears from her cheeks. When Kagami gave her a watery smile and a nod, she took Adrien's hand and Kagami's arm again, keeping the circle closed. "The power of love. Always so strong." She sighed, a smile on her face. "Now please, eat! And happy tenth White Butterfly Day."
The table erupted into voices and clapping and whoops of joy and the clatter of plates and silverware.
This was how Kagami had always wanted family to sound.