The sun rose brightly over the horizon, birds began to chirp, and the morning dew sat out on the grass like a gift waiting to be opened. Marinette opened her eyes slowly. She yawned heavily, stretching out her muscles. Slinking out of bed, she stared dreamily out the window of her cottage. Today was just another day and she had a lot of things to get done.

Hurriedly, Marinette put on her work clothes which consisted of a frilly blue blouse, a brown and pink dress, and a red bonnet to finish off the look. She quickly slipped on her shoes. First order of business: gather water from the nearby river.

She ate a slice of bread and then grabbed her bucket, rushing out the front door swiftly. The morning air greeted her with a gentle breeze and she inhaled deeply. The scent of pine trees and baked bread filled her nostrils. In other words, the smells of home.

"Marinette!" a voice called out, interrupting her thoughts. Stunned, she looked to her right and saw her best friend, Alya Cesaire, walking up to her. She also had her work attire on. She worked as a waitress at the town pub. Marinette worked there in the afternoons as a bread baker.

"Yeah?" Marinette said to her friend.

"Do you think you could come in early today? Business is unexpectedly booming," Alya said with an frown.

"Yeah, of course," Marinette nodded. "Let me just put my bucket away."

Marinette jogged over to her cottage and set her bucket down outside the door. She rejoined her friend and together they headed to the pub.

Outside, a long line of people were awaiting service. Marinette gasped at the sight of the wealthy looking people. She could tell that they lived near the castle, where life was easier. "Why are the upper class in our village?" she asked curiously.

Alya shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe the King is paying a visit?"

"Maybe," Marinette sighed. She then jerked in pain as an elbow dug into her spleen. She looked over and was face to face with an angry looking man in a formal suit.

"Stupid peasant girl," he growled distastefully. "Don't you ever touch me again."

Marinette stood in silence and watched the man push himself to the front of the line. Alya groaned. "What a rude pig. That's what all the money in the world does to a person. Just imagine how the King acts." Alya started walking away, leaving Marinette to ponder.

The villagers had only ever seen the King in person once. He looked very unhappy which was understandable since his wife had died, but Marinette hated him nonetheless. He had sent his guards to wrongfully execute Marinette's father about a year after her mom had died from a deadly virus. A few months ago, the village experienced a soar in taxes and Marinette's dad fell behind. They had ran a bakery but were forced to close it down when they couldn't keep up. The day that the taxes were late, the King's guards showed up and took her father away to have him hung. Marinette didn't even get to say goodbye.

Marinette blinked and followed Alya to the back room. She tied on an apron and got to work. She began stirring the ingredients for the bread in a large. Eventually, the dough was formed and she began forming it into a pan. Finally, she slipped the bread pan into the oven. Then she repeated the process. Over and over again.

Exhausted, Marinette provided the last batch of bread and took a breather. The pub had never had so many customers before. Marinette wondered why this was for a brief second, but then the answer was provided for her.

The door to the pub opened swiftly and standing in its doorway were numerous guards. They all lined up beside the door and that's when Marinette saw him. She clenched her fists in anger as she stared at him from behind the counter.

King Gabriel had his arms crossed behind his back as he inspected the pub. Numerous people gasped and bowed, while some women curtsied. Marinette would do nothing of the sort.

"Villagers," King Gabriel spoke, his voice booming. "Consider this a warning."

Marinette's eyes widened. What was he talking about?

"From this day forward, taxes will be raised in order to provide a sufficient amount of resources for our military."

Marinette gasped as her hands flew up to her mouth. She could barely get by now. If the prices of everything were raised, how would she get food? She'd have to work double the amount of time she does now just to buy bread!

"What?" a familiar male voice barked. Marinette recognized that voice. It was her neighbor, Nino.

"I can barely survive now! My father is working day and night already!" Nino continued angrily. Guards immediately held their swords up to Nino's neck and he flinched ever so slightly.

King Gabriel continued to show no sign of emotion and instead ordered the guards to put down their weapons. He sighed annoyingly. "I cannot help that. And do not talk out of turn, peasant. The military needs money for weapons so they can fight in the war. Your safety means everything to me."

Marinette frowned. Gabriel didn't care; his tone revealed that. She wanted to protest, but it wasn't worth it. She knew that if anyone else tried to argue, they'd just get imprisoned. Truthfully, she was surprised that Nino wasn't executed immediately.

"That is all," King Gabriel announced coldly, his voice booming. He turned around and left the pub, taking his guards with him.

Alya growled furiously as soon as the King was out of sight. She shook her head furiously to Marinette. "Can you believe this? He's raising taxes again! And something tells me that it isn't for the military at all!"

"I know," Marinette muttered. "I'm so sick of this. We need to do something."

"I know," Alya sighed. "But what are we going to do?"

"Something," Marinette mumbled. She glanced around the pub. It looked like most of their customers had left as the King did.

"Thanks for your help today," Alya nodded. She began wiping off the counter. "I really hope the royal family doesn't visit here again."

"Be careful what you wish for," Marinette said.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Alya laughed as she disappeared into the back room.

Marinette took off her apron and hung it up on its respective hook. With one final goodbye, she left the pub.

Marinette glanced up at the sky and could see that the sun would set soon. Picking up a bouquet of flowers, she had one more thing to do.

Marinette walked down her usual trail through the woods. Her surroundings were quiet and peaceful; she wished she could live in the woods forever.

Finally, she came upon the site. Marinette sat in front of two tombstones reading "Thomas Dupain" and "Sabine Cheng-Dupain." A tear fell down her cheek.

"Hello Papa. Hello Mama," she whispered, gently setting the flowers in front of the tombstones.

"The King is raising taxes again," she mumbled hopelessly. "I don't know how I'll get by now."

Of course, there was no reply. She continued to talk as the gentle breeze brushed her face.

"Gabriel said that the money was going towards war efforts but I know that isn't true," Marinette sighed.

Her eyes watered and she began to sob. "I'm going to stop this. I'm going to put an end to this. I don't know how, but I will bring fairness to this village. I promise."

Marinette cried immensely as she huddled up next to her parents' tombstones. "I miss and love you both," she weeped.

After a few minutes, Marinette composed herself and stood up. She glanced longingly at the two graves before walking back to the village. The sun had set, causing the woods to grow cold and weary. As the village came into view, Marinette could see a glowing lantern hanging up against her cottage. It was brightening up the darkness. Like a light at the end of the tunnel.

*

TADA! first chapter is done! couldn't think of a better title so enjoy my generic one XD I hope everyone enjoyed!! stay tuned!