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I don’t want a lot for Christmas...
Ladybug leaped from rooftop to rooftop, flying with her yoyo across Paris. The sun had already set, leaving blue hues covering the sky. The Eiffel Tower shined brightly like a beacon of light, directing her towards her destination. Ladybug was on a mission. A mission so hard, but so worth the wonderful, heart stopping emotion.
Ladybug was going to confess her love. To Adrien Agreste.
There is just one thing I need...
Marinette had known for some time now that Adrien was Chat Noir. It was an accident really- she walked in on him transforming in an alley. It took her a week to wrap her head around; she could barely look at them, much less utter a word. With chat, it was better. She had to talk to him during akumas. With Adrien, well, there was nothing forcing her to talk to him, except Alya of course.
She finally started merging the two together when Adrien made a stupid pun in physics (“May the mass times acceleration be with you”). After that, she spent hours wondering how she couldn’t see it before. After three weeks of getting used to it, Marinette was ready to share her identity. It was only fair, and she didn’t want to keep anything from him anymore. Of course, she would also be confessing her love for him.
As Ladybug of course.
She had the perfect plan. The opportunity to confess her love and identity came to her last week when she coincidentally got Adrien for Secret Santa. After wracking her brain for gift ideas, it suddenly came to her.
She would give him what he had always wanted as Chat Noir, as Adrien Agreste, as one person in general. What he has been asking for since the beginning they met and up until last week where he joked about it. No, it wasn’t a joke. It was something he really wanted. It was the only present she could give him.
I don’t care about the presents….
Of course, she had a plan. First, she created several slips of paper with poems written on each. The poems gave clues to her identity- the first poem she wrote held more clues that led to Marinette (“From where I sit, I get to stare at your beautiful golden locks all day”). The second led more clues for Ladybug (“As we leap through roof tops, I can’t keep my eyes off you”). She also hinted that she knew he was Chat Noir, which was probably the funniest thing to watch. The pay off was amazing- Adrien kept freaking out to Nino about his “Secret Admirer”, and Marinette couldn’t help, but to chuckle under her breath every time. It was fun messing with her kitty.
In the last poem, she told him to go to the park across from her house. There, she led clues all over the place- their favorite patrol spot, the seine, the park, the place where they first met as superheroes, and lastly the place where they exchanged umbrella’s as civilians: On the steps of their Collѐge , where it was now decorated with lights and Christmas Trees.
Underneath the Christmas Tree...
And that’s where she was headed now, to enact the third and final stage of her plan, and the one she was looking forward to most.
She saw him before he saw her. He wore a dark green peacoat with a black sweater and a white button up, and a scarlet red tie paired with blue slacks. His blonde hair was effortlessly pushed back, showing the lines of his face well. His cheeks and nose were slightly red from the cold.
She swung down on her yoyo and landed right in front of him. She walked up to him, watching the look of awe on his face.
I just want you for my own...
“What are you doing out here in the cold, Adrien?” She asked with concern.
“I-you-uh-” Adrien stuttered while scratching the back of his neck, a cute blush blooming on his cheeks.
On the inside, Marinette was touched that he was acting this way. On the other hand, she felt so satisfied that he was already falling right into her trap. And on the other side, she put her best “confused face” to fool him.
“Is there something wrong?” Ladybug asked again, this time with more innocence and obliviousness.
“No, I’m, um, just waiting for someone.” Adrien answered. This time, his voice was more steady and confident, but she still sensed the feeling of caution and hesitation.
“Me, too. I have something important to tell him.” Ladybug smirked when she saw Adrien’s eyes widen.
“What do you have to t-tell him?” Adrien asked.
Oh, he was getting so rattled. And she loved it!
Ladybug giggled. “Adrien, you know how love confessions work, don’t you?”
Adrien’s jaw dropped. She just smiled at him kindly and waited for him to recover. But inside, she was laughing so hard. This was probably one of the best things she’s even pulled yet.
“Y-Yeah, I guess. Who are y-you waiting for?” He asked, leaning towards her with curiosity.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She teased while circling around him. “I reckon you’re here for love, too. Who’s the lucky girl?”
“I don’t know, but I can’t wait to find out.” Adrien said with a dreamy look on his face.
Marinette smiled blissfully. This is going to work. This is actually going to work!
“Oh?” Ladybug asked, a teasing smirk making its way onto her face.
Adrien blushed deeply as he scratched his neck. “Yeah, she uh, likes to send me letters…” He mumbled.
“Love letters!?” She sang with a grin. She moved in closer, making him blush even more.
“Yeah, love letters. I know, it’s stupid, but I just can’t help being excited. At first, I thought it was some fangirl or something, but now….I think she loves me. She seems to know everything about me: things I’ve never told anyone about. Ever. I don’t even know how she found out these things. Somehow, I think she just knows. I think she wants to tell me she loves me, flaws in all. I think she wants to do it in person. I think that’s why she sent me here” Adrien explained with a joyful look on his face.
More than you could ever know….
“And you love her?”
Adrien sighed. “That’s the problem. I don’t know who she is. She alludes to it all the time, but I feel like it’s two people. The one hint leads to one person and another hint leads to another person. It’s so confusing, it makes my brain burst. But...I still get excited everytime I see a letter in my locker. I just...I want to know her.” Adrien laughed. “This is very foolish, isn’t it? I’m ranting about my love life to you. We barely even know each other. I don’t even know why I’m telling you this, Ladybug.” Adrien said honestly.
Ladybug placed a hand on his shoulder. “I think it’s because you have faith that I’m going to say the right thing. And I’ll try to do so. This person….from the way you describe her, it sounds like she does love you. If she really knows everything about you, she probably wants you to know all of her. Maybe these two people you are thinking of….is the same person all along.”
Adrien laughed once again. “I don’t think you understand. I’m not talking about her having completely different personalities, but that these clues lead to two separate people.”
Marinette gave him a stern look. “No, you don’t understand. I’m saying these two separate people, might be one in the same. I mean, look at me! Do you really think I stay out protecting evil all day in the suit?”
“No…”
“Exactly. I have a family, and friends, and dreams, and hobbies, just like everyone else does! These girls- no, this one girl, loves you. So find out who she is, get to know her, and something might happen.” Ladybug encouraged him.
Adrien smiled kindly. “Wow, that actually is really good advice. I just hope that your right.”
Ladybug stepped on her tiptoes and gave Adrien a kiss on the cheek. Adrien’s mouth formed a tiny “o”, as he cheeks darkened.
“I wish you best of luck.” She brought behind her back the gift she was carrying on the way there and held it out to him.
“What’s this for?” He asked with wonder. His eyebrows were scrunched in confusion, but his eyes and voice were one of a little kid on Christmas Day.
Make my wish come true….
“Just a good luck charm,” Ladybug said with a wink.
And then she was off. She used her yoyo to vault her to the next few buildings, watching carefully for Adrien’s eyes to drift back to the box. Once he took his eyes off her and paid attention to the gift, she circled back around and crouched in a hidden alcove on the next roof over.
Adrien untied the white ribbon and opened the box so slow it seemed liked hours to her. It took a second for him to process, but once he did he slammed the box shut. She giggled in amusement. He slowly opened the box again, most likely making sure what he saw was real. He eyes widened, his cheeks flushed, but she saw pure happiness in his mind.
He muttered the gift out loud. “Marinette…”
His voice filled with love and passion, but awe and wonder. It filled Marinette’s heart with joy to hear him say her name like that. Like she was the greatest thing that happened to him, and that she will always be. She had done it. She really had done it. Her laugh rang like bells through the streets. The sound was filled with the happiness that she had heard when Adrien muttered her name.
Adrien eyes sharply looked up and locked onto her’s. She winked before leaping away towards home.
All I want for Christmas is you….