Chapter Text
‘That went well! Good job, kitty’
Chat laughed, easily keeping up pace with Ladybug as they chatted away the rest of their patrol (might as well do a proper one, after all).
‘You too, my lady. Now, tell me your honest opinion: why would I look better in pigtails than you?’
Ladybug rolled her eyes, grin on her face. She hooked her yoyo on a lamppost, relishing in the feeling of flying through the air.
‘I have no doubt they would look great on you, but please. I’m the one who rocks the look. Or rocked, at least’
Chat seemed to ponder that a bit.
‘Do you miss them? I know it hasn’t even been a week yet, but from the way Nino talked on Tuesday, it had been a really long time since you had short hair, no?’
Ladybug hummed, considering his question.
‘I guess so. It’s different, and I can’t say I would have cut it if it wasn’t my last option, but it’s not really bad. I think I’m going to grow it out again, but I’m not sure yet. Nino’s right, it’s been years, and it was still a bit longer than this’
‘You’ve known him for a long time, no? Why weren’t you two as close as you are now?’
Ladybug shrugged mid air, glancing at Chat.
‘To be honest, I was way more quiet before. Not that I disliked anyone or they disliked me - well, except Chloé, I guess. But it was more that we were acquaintances than friends. Alya was the one that gave me courage to speak up more. You did, too’
Chat Noir faltered, yelping when he almost missed a jump. Seeing that, Ladybug decided they should probably pause for a bit, and landed on a nearby roof, sitting down.
‘I did? How? When?’
Ladybug chewed on her lip, not particularly proud of her first day suited up. She did learn to forgive herself for those mistakes, but it didn’t make them pleasant to talk about.
‘That first day we fought an akuma, you put your trust and faith in me. You cheered me up when I messed up, and reassured me when I needed. I didn’t really have much confidence before that; being as clumsy as I am, having Chloé always on my case, having my crafts not come out like I wanted them to over and over again, it all had taken its toll on me and I hadn’t even noticed. I mean, now I see I had no reason to be as unsure of myself as I was, and that making mistakes is part of learning and bettering myself, but I didn’t have that mindset back then. Alya encouraged me to stand up for myself and others, and you helped me forgive my own mistakes’
Chat Noir was quiet, taking it all in. Silently, he reached his hands, gently holding Ladybug’s.
‘I… I’m honestly baffled, and I’m not really sure what to say. I can’t quite put all I’m feeling in words, but… I’m glad I was able to help you back. And I’m so happy to know you’re better, though I’d still give the world for you to see yourself from my eyes just once; you’re absolutely amazing, my lady. Thank you, for being kinder to yourself and not giving up on Stoneheart’
Ladybug took one of her hands back, scratching her cheek.
‘I sorta did though. I tried to pass the earrings along. I went from feeling proud at helping, to having the rug pulled from my feet the next. The shaky confidence I had broke, and I just couldn’t see how I’d ever be a proper hero. I thought Paris would be better off with someone else in my place, and I picked Alya, even managed to sneak the box inside her bag. But when Stoneheart came back, she left it in the class in favor of racing after the akuma, and when I grabbed it and followed her, I saw you on one of the golems’ hands, and her trapped between a car and a wall. So I put the earrings back on, and just... did it, I guess? Turns out the best way to do something you’re absolutely sure you are not cut out for and is doomed for failure is just plunging through it despite the nasty voice in your head”
She finished with a wry smile, nervous. But she knew it had to be said; their trust should grow, and they really had to be more open about their flaws; she noticed Adrien seemed to be as lovestruck for Ladybug as she was for him, and it didn’t seem healthy (Tikki made that very clear for her… She needed to talk to him about it, but she didn't feel ready yet. Opening up step by step, taking advantage of moments like this, was her way of easing herself into this conversation)
Chat Noir looked deep in her eyes, and Ladybug could tell he was thinking of how to best express what was on his mind. She knew the face he was making and the time he was taking to reply meant he was serious about his answer and that she should take it to heart, whether she liked it or not.
‘Ladybug, I can see in your eyes you’re nervous and scared. I need you to know I don’t think any less of you for it. There is no shame in saying something may be too much for you, and while I’m really glad you kept the miraculous, I would never hold it against you if you had not put them back. We were chosen, but that never meant we had to accept it. It is dangerous, and honestly seems to be way too much responsibility for us at times, especially for you who has to purify the butterflies, and no one should judge you for being scared of it. I’m sure by now you noticed you’re more than capable of being the best hero there could be, but being capable of something and being able to handle it are different things and only you can decide that. Heck, even if you were just not wanting to deal with it would be a valid reason. To be honest, yes I love helping people, but the best part of being a hero and what makes it more than worth it to do it is both the freedom it gives me and being partnered with you. Selfish reasons, but I doubt you think any less of me for it, am I wrong?’
Ladybug shook her head; she knew how much he loved being a hero, and if one of the people he was helping happened to be himself, that was more than alright in her book.
‘See, that’s what I mean. You’re just as amazing as before in my eyes, maybe even more. It’s really brave of you to have faced your fears and insecurities to help me and Alya. Thank you for that, Bugaboo’
Well. That certainly backfired on gently making him realize her faults, but a weight she never noticed seemed to lift from her shoulders. She smiled, squeezing the hand still in hers, feeling better than she had in quite some time, if she were to be honest.
‘Thank you, minou. I think I needed to hear that’
To her, Chat’s answering smile looked like sunshine and felt like a warm breeze. Getting lost in it, it took her a couple seconds to remember she had something important she needed to discuss with him.
‘Sorry for changing the subject like this, but… We need a gameplan, Chaton’
Tilting his head to the side, the fake tail swished once, ears facing Ladybug. Chat just nudged his head, silently telling her to go on.
‘Friday is fine, since only one of us has to show up, but… Saturdays are the only day we always do a joint patrol. I’m surprised we managed to fool Alya for this long, but she is bound to get suspicious if we both disappear at the same time… and even if she doesn’t come to the right conclusion, I’m not sure whatever she assumes is happening would be any better’
Chat Noir’s back went perfectly straight, and his eyes were almost as wide as that one time she tested whether or not he would jump after laser dots (the results of that particular experiment was extremely satisfying, but she still wanted to try out the catnip). The quietest curse left his mouth.
‘If we do end up doing this kind of sleepovers weekly or biweekly, it would mean a lot of excuses… I hadn’t thought of that’
Ladybug nodded, knowing he hated lying to his friends as much as she did (though he did had an easier time brushing the guilt aside, having been brought up in the midst of liars. Didn’t mean he cared any less, just that he would cope a bit better than her)
‘We might be able to shift the joint patrol day away from the weekend, but it would only raise more questions than we can answer if we change it right now… We already changed a lot, so it might be better if we do it slowly. Maybe even have one of us miss a patrol, and the other leads Alya somewhere so she gets to ask it on the same day. Being the source of Miraculous news tend to excite her, so it would be a bit easier to sidetrack her’
Chat nodded, tail slowly moving while he pondered about it.
‘We have to figure out a day where we could both be free during the week, though. I know we haven’t done it since we found each other out, but maybe switch the gaming night with the joint patrol? Alya and Nino did seem interested in the game too, so there’s that’
Ladybug thought about it, liking the Chat’s idea. Switching those would be a relatively simple change, and it would mean less lies and less trouble down the road.
Maybe they could even tie this change with the patrol area change. Do a joint patrol this week, one of them solo the next, making sure they mentioned to Alya about a possible day switch, and on the third week they patrolled on wednesday instead of saturday.
Smiling, she voiced it to Chat, who grinned back. Satisfied, they joked around a bit more before resuming patrol, enjoying the rest of their time before going home.
Tomorrow marked another beginning, and both of them couldn’t be more excited.