Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It had been nearly a week, and yet Adrien was still on cloud nine.

He had a date. A date with Ladybug. Adrien had a date with Ladybug!

That is, Cat Noir had a date with Ladybug. After their last battle against an akuma, in those precious few moments he got to spend with her once it was de-evilised, before she dashed off to transform back, it had happened.

Ladybug had offered some comforting words of reassurance to the victim, who had then quite quickly ran off after thanking the duo. She then turned back to Cat Noir.

“As always, my lady, you were truly paw-inspiring. I love watching you work,” Cat Noir had said, with a sweeping bow. When he looked up, however, Ladybug was frowning.

“Watch? When did you have time for that, between holding back the hordes of minions and Cataclysming your way up through the floor to take her down? You’ve got to stop putting yourself down like that, Cat, you know I couldn’t do this without you.”

Adrien’s cheeks tinged pink, but his face bore a wide grin as he spoke. “Sorry, Bugaboo. I don’t mean it like that. Just that… the way you do what you need to do… it’s like an art form.”

There was no hint of sarcasm or insincerity on his face as he spoke, and Ladybug was reminded of how sweet and genuine both he and his affections truly were. Her earings gave a warning beep, but she knew she still had another minute.

“Tell you what, kitty. I think I still owe you an evening to get to know each other better. Over, say, dinner? Got a free evening coming up?” she asked, giggling a little as he gaped back at her.

His ring beeped to remind him that he too had only moments to decide. Luckily, he knew that by some miracle Natalie had kept his schedule free at the end of the week. “Totally! Uh, how about Friday night? Le Grand Paris? 7 o’clock?”

Ladybug readied her yoyo to swing away. “Sounds perfect! See you then! Bug out!”

All week Marinette had felt so warm and content as she walked into class. Normally it would be a chore, but each day this week she’d entered the room to find Adrien in his seat wearing an utterly goofy grin. It made her happy just to know he was also feeling so good, for whatever reason. She may be giving Cat Noir a chance, but she knew that it didn’t necessarily mean anything, and it certainly hadn’t impacted the soft spot for Adrien in her heart that overflowed and spilled out into the rest of her body.

Once Marinette had sat down, Nino turned to talk to her and Alya. He stopped upon seeing the exact same goofy grin on both Adrien and Marinette’s face, her eyes boring into the back of Adrien’s skull. “Wow, you guys are just too adorable,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Guess you’re both pretty excited for the big date tonight then, huh?”

Marinette and Adrien both turned in the same moment and gave Nino the same panicked look, giving off a strong creepy twin vibe.

“B-big date?” Marinette squeaked.

“What are you… oh,” Adrien said, trailing off into a soft sigh. He had remembered why his schedule was clear for that evening.

A month earlier, the four were enjoying lunch together in the park. Knowing they’d want to eat outside to enjoy the good weather, Adrien had had his chef prepare him a lunch. When he took it out piece by piece, the others laughed at the ridiculous meal he’d brought.

“Dude, where’s the rest of this sandwich?” Nino asked, holding up a square inch of bread.

“It’s supposed to be that small, I think,” Adrien laughed.

“Is that just… plain watercress? Nothing else?” Alya said, frowning.

“Yeah,” Adrien sighed, “All part of a precisely calculated meal plan.”

Marinette managed to hold back her soft groan at this, and instead smirked at Adrien. “Well, what if we could find a substitute that was just as perfectly balanced. Say, this pain au chocolat!”

“And how exactly is pain au chocolat the same as a watercress sandwich?” Alya asked, but she too was grinning.

“Simple! The dough is obviously just the same as bread, it’s in the name, and the chocolate is just like watercress! It was grown as cocoa beans and sugar, and they just… mix them together a little before adding it in, that’s all,” Marinette said, giggling. Everyone laughed, but Marinette wanted to make sure she had him. “Freshly baked this morning!”

At this, Adrien relented, and the whole group began swapping food around to ensure Adrien had something close to a real meal.

“Thanks you guys, that was awesome,” Adrien sighed once it was all eaten. “Marinette, your parents’ baking might just be the best food in all of Paris.”

She blushed at this, but managed to maintain eye contact as she smiled at Adrien.

“It was a tough call for a while, but I think it’s just inched out ahead of Le Grand Paris.”

“Adrien, I’m so offended! I can’t believe you’d insult my mother’s cooking this way!” Alya gasped, thrusting the back of her hand against her own forehead in distress. After a moment, she dropped the act. “But yeah, that’s fair. I’d rather fresh macaroons or even just their bread to the stuff my mom makes nine times out of ten.”

“Right, I forgot she was head chef there now! Nino, have you ever had a chance to try Alya’s mom’s cooking?”

“Yeah, once or twice,” Nino said. “It’s all right. But to be honest I’d rather just get an extra cheesey pizza!”

Adrien laughed and turned to the last member of the group. “What about you, Marinette?”

“Oh, well… I’ve never eaten at Le Grand Paris, and Alya’s dad usually cooks at home since her mom is always so tired of cooking when she gets home, so…”

“You’ve never eaten at Le Grand Paris?” Adrien said, ignoring the rest of Marinette’s trailing rambles.

“At Chloe’s dad’s restaurant?” she said, raising an eye at Adrien. He sighed.

“Right, of course. But you really should try it, at least once… how about if I took you there? It’s the least I could do to pay you back for all this today.”

Marinette’s face went bright red. Alya and Nino both instantly sat bolt upright.

“Bro, did you just ask Marinette out? On a date? Like, for real?” Nino said before Alya could stop him.

Adrien heard Marinette squeak, and he looked at her, as she adamantly looked anywhere but at him. He had known about her crush on him for some time - how could he not? But while she occasionally clammed up too much to speak, he’d managed to see so many sides of Marinette. Fiercely standing up for anyone who needed help, putting the utmost passion into all she did, and being just so sweet and utterly adorable.

His heart would always belong to Ladybug, but there would be no harm in having some fun, right? If things had gone just a little differently - if he’d made it in to school that first day and met Marinette first, for instance - he knew he could have fallen for Marinette.

Just one date. They’d both get the chance to see more sides of each other, to know each other better. Adrien smiled.

“Well sure, why not?”

Once the chaotic reactions to his simple rhetorical question had died down, Adrien was able to make plans with Marinette. He explained he had to book far in advance, a full month, to ensure that his schedule could be kept clear.

“Nino!” Alya cried, smacking Nino’s arm. “Leave them alone!”

Adrien was crestfallen over realising he’d gone and double-booked himself. He’d saved the date a month in advance especially for this. When Ladybug had asked, with only moments to spare, he’d just given the first time he knew he didn’t have any work or lessons to worry about. And he couldn’t contact Ladybug now to change his plans with her… but he couldn’t bear the thought of letting Marinette down after she’d been waiting a month.

“I thought it was next week,” Marinette muttered to herself. She was devastated. She couldn’t believe she’d done this to herself. And Adrien. And Cat Noir. Why did she decide to make plans with him when they both only had seconds to spare? She’d been hoping for some closure with Cat Noir first, after realising she’d built up a small crush on him. But in her haste she’d agreed to the same night with two different people. She looked back down at Adrien and saw him looking at her, clearly upset.

Oh no. Of course. Now he’d remembered what he’d agreed to a month ago and what a mistake it was. Now he realised he’d agreed to spend that evening alone with her and he was dreading it. Marinette should have seen this coming. Nevertheless, she could explain to him that it was okay if he wanted to skip out… as much as it hurt her to pass him up.

Adrien saw Marinette turn to look at him, and saw how upset she was looking at his expression. There was no way he could possibly allow her to feel bad about this, so he put on his best photo smile.

“Of course I’m excited. I can’t wait to show you what you’ve been missing, Marinette.”

Marinette was struck by how quickly his expression changed from devastated to elated when she looked at him, and her heart skipped a beat. She wouldn’t miss this for the world.

“S-sounds perfect. Um, did we ever set a time?”

“Right, of course. How about I pick you up at… 6 o’clock?”

Marinette nodded her agreement, and the pair simply smiled at each other for a moment. Marinette knew she must have been blushing crimson, but in that moment, with Adrien looking at her like she was the sunrise on a summer’s morning, she couldn’t find it in herself to care. Especially when… was that… a faint hint of a blush on his cheeks too?

“Great. Now that you’ve arranged that, can we get started? Some of us want to get this class over with already,” Alix said, grinning at the pair. Adrien and Marinette looked around, and realised the whole class was in their seats, staring at them and snickering. Miss Bustier included.

“Sorry, Miss Bustier, sorry everyone!” Adrien said, flashing the class a grin and waving. He and Marinette took their seats as it dawned on him how much Marinette had just held his focus, totally blocking out the world around them.

So Marinette thought to herself. Adrien’s picking me up at 6, Cat Noir’s not expecting me until 7. That’s plenty of time to get sorted. I’ll just have to… excuse myself… for quite some time...frequently… No problem. I can totally handle this.

Adrien, meanwhile, was having similar thoughts. So I’ll pick Marinette up, get our table, place some orders, and then find a way to go find Ladybug. Easy.

Absolutely nothing to worry about…

Chapter Text

Alya offered to come over and help Marinette get ready that evening, but she declined. She had too much to plan and prepare, first on the list being to properly discuss the matter with Tikki.

“Is that all okay, Tikki? I’m really sorry to ask, but I don’t want to hurt Cat Noir again, and I can’t miss this chance with Adrien!” Marinette sighed, slumping back in her office chair.

“As long as you keep me fed up, I’m sure we can manage for one night,” Tikki said, giggling at Marinette’s melodramatic distress. “So have you figured out what you’re going to wear?”

“Well, I have to be transformed, so-”

Marinette sat bolt upright. Plans with Adrien had been set up so long ago that she hadn’t really considered it. With Cat Noir it was simple; she, of course, had to be wearing her Ladybug costume. But with Adrien…

“I didn’t even think. Oh man… it’s a pretty fancy place, right? So I should really dress up nice… And Adrien will be dressing smartly too, right? But what if he’s just thinking about this as a casual meal between two friends, maybe he’s going to dress more casually - maybe he’s not even going to change from school? Ah, Tikki, what do I do!?”

“Well, first things first, keep breathing,” Tikki said calmly. She sat down on Marinette’s shoulder. “I’m sure whatever you wear will be perfect!”

“That’s sweet, Tikki, but right now I need practical advice and a straightforward answer,” Marinette said. She grabbed her phone from the desk and called.

“Girl, I told you I should have come over to help you out,” Alya laughed. “Want me to head over now? I can be there in 20 minutes.”

“Thanks, Alya, but things are a little crazy here at the moment,” Marinette said. In truth, she just wanted to make sure she could talk freely with Tikki, just in case. “I’m trying to work out what to wear tonight. Just like… how formal it should be…”

“Well, it’s a pretty fancy place… but on the other hand I’ve never seen Adrien wear anything except that black t-shirt and white overshirt… which is especially weird seeing as how he’s a fashion model…”

Marinette span in her chair and looked over her pictures of Adrien, frowning. She shook her head. “Do you see my problem? So… is there any chance you could…”

Adrien was off his game. His eyes kept flitting away from the screen to the clock on the wall above, despite it only being five past four, having just over two hours before he was due to go pick up Marinette. He may have been somewhat nervous about the prospect of going on two simultaneous dates.

If he could even call either of them that. What counted as a date? He’d certainly been thinking of the meal with Ladybug as a date - just the two of them together at a romantic restaurant. That was what a date was, right? Except by the exact same measure that made the meal with Marinette a date too, and he didn’t think that’s what that was.

Didn’t he? Maybe. He hadn’t meant it that way when he asked, he’d just meant it as a nice thing to do with his friend, so they could get closer, know each other better. Alongside Alya and Nino he’d started spending more time with Marinette, but they didn’t spend much time alone together.

Okay, so there was all the training they did together for the Mecha Strike III tournament. And that time he’d helped translate between Marinette and her uncle, then hung out for the rest of the day after realising he wasn’t really needed any more. And then they’d spent pretty much all of Chloe’s party together, dancing together for a while. Not to mention when she’d accompanied him across half of Paris to avoid his crazed fans while wearing her pyjamas… okay, well, maybe they did spend plenty of time together. And maybe he just really enjoyed it.

His eyes flitted to the clock again. 4:06pm. He sighed.

“And down he goes! The winner is Nino Lahiffe!” Nino cried out through Adrien’s headpiece, as the screen displayed a defeat message. Adrien sighed again, but more bemusedly, shaking his head. “Everything okay on your end dude? You’ve been really quiet.”

“Yeah, I’m fine Nino, thanks. I’m just…”

“Nervous?”

“I think so…” Adrien said. Nino chuckled.

“Oh, hold on dude, quick pause before the next round, I’m getting a phone call,” Nino said. Adrien could hear him set his headset down and walk away.

So maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if it were a date with Marinette. Except for the fact that he was also meeting Ladybug, and he desperately wanted that to be a date, and he didn’t want to be the kind of guy who went on dates with two different girls. Definitely not at the same time. Maybe he should have cancelled one of the meals... But he refused to let either Ladybug or Marinette down. Not again.

With a scuffling noise as he replaced his headset, Nino returned.

“Yo, sorry about that. So, do you have time for another game, or do you need to start getting ready?”

Adrien blanched. “Wh-what do you mean? Should I be?”

“I dunno, how formal is it? Are you just wearing your normal clothes or are you gonna dress up all fancy?”

“I hadn’t really thought about it… I guess I was just gonna wear what I wore to school. But should I dress up? It’s a fancy place, I guess… and what if Marinette dresses up? Should I?” Adrien rambled. At this point, Plagg had flown over from his perch to watch Adrien, but was at least polite enough not to interrupt.

“Hey, Nino… could you do me a favour?”

It only took five minutes for Nino to call Alya back, but that was more than enough time for her to grow impatient and start pacing around her room. She breathed a sigh of relief as Nino’s face appeared on her phone’s screen, and she answered.

“So what’s our boy’s plan?” she asked promptly.

“Well…” Nino sighed, but it quickly turned into a chuckle. “It’s a good thing I was subtle about it and didn’t say Marinette was asking, that’d really have freaked him out. He’s not sure what to wear, he honestly sounded just like Marinette when she starts rambling.”

“Ugh, those two are made for each other. I hate them. We need to help these precious morons, Nino,” Alya said, pacing faster now than when she was waiting. “This is going to end up just like our first date if we don’t make the decision for them.”

“Hey, what was wrong with our first date? I thought it was cute!”

“Nino, you looked like you’d just rolled out of bed and I dressed up like it was prom.”

“Yeah, we were an adorable trainwreck!”

Alya shook her head, then realised he couldn’t see her. “No, Nino, just… no. We want this to be special for these guys, so I’m going to tell Marinette Adrien’s planning on suiting up. Can I trust you to make sure that happens?”

Nino pulled back his phone and frowned at Alya’s called ID picture, fully aware that she couldn’t see him. “Alya, I can assure you, when Marinette sees Adrien tonight, she’ll think he’s more dashing than ever.”

Alya thanked him, then hung up to call Marinette back. Nino sat down at his desk and put his headset back on once again. “Yo Adrien, you there? Yeah, just go as you are man, you’re fine. You just need to relax and enjoy yourself tonight, my dude!”

“Phew, thanks Nino. Think I’m gonna head off and grab a shower though,” Adrien said.

“Good plan. If you’re half as nervous as you sound you must reek!” Nino said, laughing hard. Adrien gave a small chuckle back, and Nino spoke again, flatly. “Relax Adrien, you’re gonna go out and have a good time with your friend. Don’t worry about anything else. It’s just Marinette. Catch ya later!”

With a beep, Nino was gone. Adrien took off his headset and casually tossed it onto his desk. “Yeah. Just Marinette…”

“Cheddar for your thoughts?” Plagg said, holding a cheese wedge towards Adrien. He smiled and shook his head.“I’ll pass, thanks Plagg. So, about tonight. Remember I’m supposed to be going for dinner with Ladybug?”

“How could I not…”

“Right. Well, did you by any chance remember that I made plans with Marinette at the same time?”

“I’d been wondering how you were planning on handling that, but you seemed so happy, I didn’t want to risk ruining it!”

Adrien chuckled, shaking his head. “Thanks for that. So. I’ve got a proposal for you to get through this night that involves you getting a lot of camembert…”

Marinette had paced around her room for a while, and come close to biting her fingernails apart, so had opted to paint them as a distraction. It meant she could feel like she was getting ready and dressy, but without being so much that she couldn’t pass it off as being casual, even though she didn’t normally paint them. She was just finishing up her final layer when Alya called her back.

Tikki had to stop Marinette from picking up her phone, reminded her about her still wet nails. Instead, Tikki accepted the call and hit speakerphone, then quickly moved away, just in case. Marinette silently mouthed “thank you” to her.

“Hey, Marinette, hope you’re not freaking out too hard over there,” Alya said, and Marinette could hear her knowing smirk. She scoffed nonetheless.

“Whaaaaat, me, freak out, have you ever known me to panic or stress out about anything, much less about Adrien?” Marinette asked. The girls shared a short giggle. “Now spill the beans already! What’s Adrien wearing tonight?”

“You’ll be pleased to hear that Mr Agreste will be donning his most dashing evening wear tonight,” Alya said in a mock pretentious tone. “Just make sure you don’t spend too long drooling over that mental image or you won’t have time to get all dolled up yourself.”

“E-evening wear? You mean like… a tux?” Marinette asked, audibly gulping. She looked over to her clothes hamper, lost in thought for a moment. It took her a while to realise Alya was talking to her.

“Marinette? Are you there? Girl, I was kidding with that “drooling over the mental image” remark,” she said.

“Oh, sorry Alya! I just… I’m not sure I even own anything that fancy,” Marinette sighed.

“I don’t think it needs to be quite on that level,” Alya said. “Just something a bit more formal than pink jeans, you know? If anyone can come up with an awesome last minute outfit, it’s you, Marinette.”

Marinette beamed at her phone, and caught Tikki’s eye. Her kwami smiled back, nodding in agreement.

“Thanks, Alya. I guess I’d better get to work then. Thanks for all your help.”

“Any time, Marinette. And hey, listen. Seriously, don’t stress about this, okay? Relax, enjoy yourself. Nobody wants you to worry too much about this, least of all Adrien. Now, call me when you get home tonight, I wanna hear everything! Bye!”

Marinette sighed, but smiled as Alya hung up. She went to look search through her clothes, staring out of the window at the sunny spring evening as she did.

Chapter Text

Adrien had the Gorilla drop him off to meet Marinette just a little before 6. He didn’t want to rush Marinette, but as they were going more casual he wasn’t too worried about interrupting her prep time. It was such a nice evening out, it seemed like a waste not to enjoy a stroll to the restaurant.

Marinette’s parents welcomed Adrien into their home, warmly as always. Her mother, in particular, wouldn’t stop smiling at Adrien.

“So, Marinette forgot to mention this to us until she got back from school today,” Tom laughed. Adrien chuckled back.

“Yeah, we planned it so far ahead of time we both kind of forgot about it,” he said, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Nothing to worry about, I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful time,” Sabine said. When Adrien had arrived, she’d called up the stairs to Marinette, but she called for her daughter once again.

“I’m coming, maman!” Marinette called back, trying not to sound angry, when she knew both that her mother was only trying to look out for her, and that Adrien would hear every word. She took several deep breaths to steady herself, then headed down the stairs.

The three of them were laughing together as they came into view, but they all turned to look at Marinette as they heard her coming down. Marinette had to fight back a squeal at the look on Adrien’s face; she knew immediately she’d treasure that look for the rest of her life. His jaw had dropped open, but at the same time he was grinning ear to ear. She felt her cheeks go pink, only made worse when she noticed his do the same.

Adrien cursed himself in his head for not holding back his emotions from shining through his face even a little, but he had no plans to look away from Marinette, even knowing that her parents were looking at him more than their dazzling daughter. In reality, she didn’t look all that different from normal. She hadn’t changed her hair, or her make-up any more than having painted her nails. She had, however, swapped out her day-to-day clothes for a bold yet light sundress. It was a deep red, patterned around the edges with white lilies. Her shoes matched, with small wedges for a little lift. Red was definitely Marinette’s colour, he thought.

Marinette’s smile and her feet slipped when she was a few steps from the bottom, however, and Adrien dashed forwards to catch her.

“Are you alright, Marinette?” he asked, helping her back to her feet and down the final steps.

“Y-yeah, I’m… I’m okay. But Alya- I thought you were… suiting up?” she said, lamely.

“Sorry, we must have got our wires crossed somewhere. You look amazing, though, really! Elegant and classy, but without going overboard and pretentious,” he said, beaming down at her. When Marinette still looked unconvinced, he added, so softly that Marinette’s parents couldn’t even pick it up, “You look perfect, Marinette.”

On the plus side, both Adrien’s and Marinette’s faces now matched her dress. Her eyes darted to her parents, practically vibrating in their glee.

“So hey maybe we should get going right now!” Marinette cried, grabbing Adrien’s hand and dragging him out.

“Remember, home by 10:30, sweetie!” Tom called after them.

“Have a good time!” Sabine added. They closed the door and high-fived.

Neither of them spoke again until they were safely out of the building.

“Sorry about that,” Marinette sighed, shaking her head. “Them being so over the top I mean…”

Adrien just laughed. “Don’t worry about it. Really, it’s nice that they’re so invested. They clearly care for you a lot, and just want to see you happy.”

Marinette turned to Adrien and returned the wide smile she saw on his face. Marinette felt something bump against her wrist. Then, at the same time, they each realised they were still holding hands. They pulled their hands back and turned away, both smiling, both blushing. Something clicked with Marinette.

“Hey, are you still wearing my lucky charm?” she asked.

Adrien smiled and held up his wrist. Marinette’s pink and green charm bracelet was snugly wrapped around it. “Of course, it brings me luck wherever I go. Why wouldn’t I be wearing it?”

“I just can’t believe you still have it…” Marinette said, as they descended the steps to walk along the Seine.

“Why not? I’d never get rid of it; it was a gift from a dear friend, you know,” Adrien said, winking at Marinette. Her cheeks tinged pink, but she managed to smirk back at him.

“No, I meant because I was only letting you borrow it, I meant for you to give it back!” she said, laughing.

“What!?” Adrien cried, fumbling to undo his bracelet.

“No, no, Adrien, I was kidding,” Marinette said, laughing harder still. “Besides. I have a new lucky charm now.”

She held up her other wrist, and they both smiled at the charm Adrien had given Marinette for her birthday. Suddenly, she frowned.

“I have to ask though… what’s up with the bird?”

“It’s supposed to be a rooster,” Adrien explained, blushing sheepishly. “Roosters are sometimes considered a symbol of good luck in China. And I know you’d like to be more in touch with your Chinese heritage, so I thought…”

Marinette’s jaw had dropped just a little. “So… so not only… so it was already such a sweet, thoughtful gift when I thought it was just a new charm in place of my old one. But you also thought to that level about what to put on their just for me… and you took the time to go out of your way to make it for me yourself, when you could have easily gotten someone to do it for you?”

“I guess so,” Adrien said, chuckling a little at the range of expressions Marinette’s face went through over the next few moments, first shock, then something that almost seemed sad, before settling on beaming at him, a look he only too happily returned. It was similar to the series of looks she’d borne when he first gave her the charm.

“Wow, that’s… this is the sweetest, most thoughtful gift anyone has ever given me,” Marinette sighed softly. Then she blanched. “Er, I mean, that is, I already knew it was really sweetful, and thought too- no, I mean, I’ve always thought about you- ack! No, I mean…”

Adrien laughed, and found it hard to stop. Marinette was nervous at first, worried he was laughing at her, but after a moment she laughed too.

By the time they both managed to stop laughing, Adrien realised they had walked as far down the Seine as they could and were just a minute away from the restaurant, and that they’d not really spent any time at all taking in the spring evening view. He’d been looking at Marinette the whole walk as they talked and laughed together.

Was that a problem? No, of course not, he was looking at his friend while they talked. And the more they talked, the easier it became to talk, and the more he wanted to, which meant the more he wanted to look at her. Which was a totally normal thing to do with friends. Adrien was looking forward to spending the whole evening with his friend talking with her and looking at her. Oh! Except that he was going to be sneaking off to go and see Ladybug! His best friend, with whom he was utterly in love. Of course.

Marinette certainly didn’t think it was a problem that they’d spent the walk laughing and talking, simply enjoying each other’s company. And looking directly at each other, without stammering or stuttering once after the charm incident. She was trying to work up the nerve to suggest they forgo the restaurant altogether and just walk around talking. What could be more perfect than this? Sure, she was hungry, but she didn’t want the food or all the other patrons of the restaurant getting in the way. There wasn’t really a reason they needed to go to the restaurant except oh right she was meeting Cat Noir, because she made plans with him. She invited him. On the same night that Adrien had asked her to go with him. Okay, so he’d been the one to suggest tonight, but she’d agreed. It was just her luck that they’d been in such a rush and he’d said tonight, of all nights.

This is absolutely fine.

Chapter Text

With a lot of mixed feelings, Marinette and Adrien made their way to the doors of Le Grand Paris. Despite Adrien knowing him by name, the doorman still asked if they had a reservation.

“Yes,” Adrien sighed, “Table for 2 for Agreste.”

“Ah, of course, Mr Agreste, right this way,” he said, showing them to the elevator to the restaurant.

“Your table, as requested, sir,” the waiter said with a small bow. Adrien had asked to be seated near the entrance to the restaurant, in a cordoned off booth. He wasn’t thrilled by the idea of people potentially noticing and bothering him there, but he was much less keen on the idea of Ladybug and Cat Noir getting noticed - so their table was back towards the kitchens. “Can I get you anything to drink while you read the menu?”

“Can I get a lemonade, please?” Adrien asked.

“Ooh, yes, same please. Thank you!” Marinette added, smiling brightly. She turned to Adrien, her smile becoming a cheeky grin. “So, how’d you know the doorman so well, huh? Bring a lot of girls here?”

Adrien laughed. “No, no, I just saw him a lot growing up, you know, visiting Chloe here. He knows who I am just fine, but he’s got to keep up that professional presentation, I think. So I have to use my father’s name to get the table.” He now sounded bitter, looking away. Marinette’s face fell.

“Is that a problem?” she asked, cocking her head to one side.

“No… I guess not. I just…” Adrien sighed deeply again, and looked up. “I don’t want to just get by in life on the merits of being Gabriel Agreste’s son, you know? I want to be valued as my own person.”

“Oh come on, you’re totally valued as your own person. You’re a cute, famous, cute model, half of the girls in Paris and a decent chunk of the boys think they’re in love with you!” Marinette laughed as she spoke, but stopped when she saw a very forced smile on Adrien’s face.

“What, so people like me because they’ve seen pictures of me that I’m only in in the first place because of my dad anyway? Not exactly what I had in mind.”

Their waiter brought over their drinks, and said he’d come back for the starter order shortly. The silence that fell as they sipped was not pleasant.

“Well,” Marinette said, looking down at her drink and speaking so softly Adrien had no choice but to look up and lean in. “When I first heard of you, Gabriel Agreste’s son, Chloe Bourgeois’ childhood best friend… I wasn’t exactly thrilled about you joining our class. But then I saw… a boy who wanted to always do right by others. Who just wanted a friend. Who gave me his umbrella in the rain after I’d spent the whole day yelling at him and ignoring him for something he hadn’t even done. Who would always go out of his way to help his friends when they need him. Who works hard at everything he does, even if he never wanted to do it in the first place and is only doing it to make his dad happy. Who heard his friend had never eaten at the fancy restaurant before and so made plans a month ahead of time just to make sure she had the chance.”

Adrien stared at Marinette as she spoke, and his breath hitched as she looked up at him. He felt himself go bright red, not noticing that Marinette’s cheeks matched his once again as he stared into her eyes. She shrugged. “That’s the Adrien Agreste I know. Who I appreciate…”

It took a few moments before Adrien realised his mouth was hanging open, in awe at Marinette’s words. He closed it and smiled. “Thank you, Marinette… Still. Sometimes I just hate having my last name…”

“Well... maybe you should change it,” Marinette suggested, glad for the distraction.

A small smile played on Adrien’s lips. “Oh yeah? Got anything in mind?”

“How about mine?”

Marinette had said it without thinking, and instantly regretted it. Luckily, her face was paralysed in the smile she’d had as she’d spoken, and Adrien didn’t seem to notice anything in particular about that suggestion. In fact, he seemed to like it.

“Hmm… Adrien Dupain-Cheng,” he said, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “Not bad, not bad…”

A throat-clearing sound made them both jump, and realise their water was standing by the table. Neither Adrien nor Marinette knew how long he’d been stood there.

“Are you ready to place your order?”

“Oh, shoot, sorry, we’ve not had a chance to look yet,” Adrien said, chuckling as Marinette scrambled for her menu to read through quickly. “Well, for starters I’d like to order the Mayor’s Special, but I’m not sure if you wanted to try something new, Marinette?”

“Huh?” Marinette’s eyes darted across the menu rapidly to find the starters. First listed, with a fancy golden heading, it read Marinette Soup.

Growing concerned about her circulation, Marinette blushed. “Oh, right, of course. Well there’s still plenty more to choose from later, and I still don’t get to have my uncle’s soup very often, so why not; one bowl of me, please!”

The waiter cocked an eyebrow at Marinette, and she just nervously chuckled. Thankfully, Adrien clarified on her behalf, requesting two bowls of the soup.

As the waiter stepped away, Adrien could see the clock on the wall behind him, reading 6:55.

“I’ll be right back, Marinette, gotta visit the little boy’s room,” Adrien said, chuckling nervously, dashing away.

Marinette breathed a sigh of relief. This would hopefully give her enough time to transform and meet Cat Noir… for as long as it took her to come up with another excuse to get back to Adrien. She checked all around, then opened her bag under the table.

“Okay Tikki,” she whispered to the kwami hidden inside. “Time for round one. Fly into my dress pocket, I’m going to leave my bag here in case Adrien comes back and thinks I’ve just left.”

“Good thinking, Marinette,” Tikki whispered back, zipping up into the pocket. Marinette looked around again, then dashed out into the stairwell, glancing all around, up and down the stairs to make sure she was alone.

“Tikki, spots on!”

Ladybug snuck back through the door and approached a waitress putting away menus at the reception desk opposite the elevator doors. She tried to act naturally and casually, which, of course, meant she was anything but, as she tried to slide along the floor rather than just walk. This ended with her slipping and collapsing in a heap at the waitress’s feet and nearly bowling her over.

“Excuse me, I- oh, Ladybug!” the waitress said as she turned around. She clapped a hand to her mouth as Ladybug got back to her feet, and spoke in a stage whisper. “Sorry, I know you and Cat Noir wanted to be discreet about this.”

“It’s okay, no worries - I’m the one who’s sorry,” Ladybug said, grinning broadly and waving. The waitress smiled back.

“We’ve got you set up in a private side room towards the back, near the kitchens,” the waitress said. She handed Ladybug a menu and started leading her through the restaurant.

“Oh, you didn’t need to go to such trouble on our account!” Ladybug said.

“Whoa, is that Ladybug!?”

“Ladybug’s over there, wow!”

Ladybug looked around the room at the other patrons starting to notice her. She smiled, perhaps a touch awkwardly, and waved around the room. The waitress paused and looked back at her.

“It’s no trouble, Ladybug. Seriously. We’re honoured to have you here. But while we all know how good you and Cat Noir are to your fans, we also understand that you deserve some time for just the two of you. Because… you know,” she said, winking. Ladybug frowned.

“Cat Noir and I are just friends and partners, that’s all.”

“Yeah, but like… romantic partners, right?”

“No.”

“Dang. I just lost a bet.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes, but still laughed a little at the remark. The waitress turned back around and led Ladybug to a pair of windowless double doors bearing a sign reading “Private Party”.

“So you’ll be seated in here tonight. Any staff entering will be sure to buzz through on the intercom before entering, so you’ll have total privacy,” the waitress said, pushing the doors open. “Feel free to make yourself comfortable, though Cat Noir hasn’t arri- oh!”

Cat Noir had indeed already arrived, and he smirked up as the pair entered the private room. The light of the setting sun on the horizon gave the room a deep orange tint, as the lighting inside was quite low - mostly candlelight. There were four round tables in the room, though only one set. Cat Noir sat at that table, leisurely leaning back on his chair facing the door. His face lit up at the new arrivals, and Ladybug smiled.

“Um, Mr, um… Cat Noir, sir. I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise you’d arrived yet,” the waitress said. She’d gone bright red, and she chewed on her lip.

“Hey, don’t sweat it. That’s my bad, I didn’t let anyone know I was here,” Cat Noir said, grinning broadly. He’d gotten up and walked around the table.

The waitress gave a small smile back. “Right. Well, can I get you anything to drink?”

“Lemonade, please,” both heroes said together. They looked at each other and chuckled. When Ladybug looked back at the waitress, she was raising an eyebrow and smirking.

“Sure thing. I’ll be back soon,” she said, pushing her way back through the doors.

“Good evening, m’lady,” Cat Noir said, pulling out Ladybug’s chair for her.

“Such a gentleman,” Ladybug said, grinning as she pulled up her seat.

“I’m so glad we could do this,” Cat Noir said, sitting back down across from her. “It’s just nice to get a chance to talk together and not have to be so totally focussed on saving the day.”

“Absolutely. Just as long as we steer clear of anything too revealing,” Ladybug agreed, mirroring his smile.

“Of course. So anyway, my real name is-”

“Cat!”

“-Bruce Wayne,” he said, and Ladybug almost fell out of her chair laughing as he explained, “heir to the multinational Wayne Enterprises. By day I appear to just be a rich kid living lavishly off of his parent’s money, but at night I don my black leather armour and become Batman!”

“Oh really,” Ladybug chuckled, catching her breath. “Well in that case, I’m actually Clark Kent. Mild-mannered reporter for the Daily Planet. A lot of people see me as pretty weak or timid, but that just disguises the fact that I’m actually Superman!”

Cat Noir pressed his hand to his cheek, mouth hanging open as he gasped.

“I know,” Ladybug said, bowing and shaking her head. “I’m sure it’s pretty surprising to learn I’m actually an adult American man…”

“No, it’s not that,” Cat said, suddenly grinning widely, bouncing in his seat a little. “I just can’t believe my OTP is about to become canon!”

Ladybug snorted. “Excuse me?”

“Well, OTP stands for one-true-”

“I know what it means! But… okay, first, Batman/Superman is your OTP? And second, what do you mean about to become canon?”

Before Cat Noir could answer, a buzzer went off, and Cat called for the waitress to come in with their drinks.

“Don’t tell me you don’t ship Superbat,” he said. The waitress caught Ladybug’s eye as she walked out, her own going wide as she fought back a laugh. Ladybug nodded.

“Superbat? For real, that’s the ship name?”

“No idea,” Cat said, grinning as broadly as ever. “Only just decided it was my OTP. And of course, you and I are Ladynoir. And I’ll bring you around on that ship tonight.”

He winked at her, and she warmly smiled back.

“We’ll see.”

Chapter Text

Going into the evening, Marinette had felt even more nervous about being with Cat Noir than with Adrien. While she may have had trouble talking to Adrien, she felt she knew what to expect from him - at the very least, she knew that once she got past her initial nerves she’d be able to talk to him, and they’d have things to talk about. With Cat Noir, she’d been worried that he would just use the whole evening as an opportunity to flirt. She was, however, pleasantly surprised.

“Oh come on,” Cat Noir said, grinning as Ladybug gave a scandalised laugh. “You’re telling me you haven’t had any fun with any akuma fights?”

“No, of course not, I’m usually too focused on stopping some megalomaniac!” she said, still chuckling. “Go on then, which was your favourite fight?”

“Easy. Gamer. A real life Ultimate Mecha Strike mech battle? So awesome!”

“Okay, I see what you’re saying,” Ladybug said. She thought for a moment, and snapped her fingers. “Gigantitan!”

Cat Noir burst out laughing. “Yeah, I really don’t know what Hawkmoth was thinking with that one…” He went quiet for a moment, smiling at Ladybug. “My least favourite was Animan. Just for that heartstopping moment when I thought I’d lost you.”

He was still smiling, though he suddenly looked quite tired. Ladybug sighed. “My least favourite is much easier. Timebreaker.”

“Whoa, what!? But Timebreaker was so cool! Because of her, there were two Ladybugs,” Cat Noir sighed, staring out into the distance with a wistful grin.

Ladybug smiled at him, briefly. Then she explained, “Before I time travelled… the reason I time travelled… and the reason you didn’t… Timebreaker got you. At first. You were protecting me. And I really truly thought in that moment you might be gone forever.”

They fell quiet for a moment, looking out of the window as darkness settled outside, making the candles seem all the brighter. Cat Noir reached across the table, placing his hand on Ladybug’s. She looked round and met his eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere. Gonna take a lot more than time travel for you to get rid of me,” he said, smirking until Ladybug returned his grin. “Okay, next question; who’s the best looking akuma we’ve fought, and why was it Copycat?”

Ladybug snorted, shaking her head.

When another waiter came to take their starter order, Ladybug was surprised (and flattered) to find that Cat Noir also recommended Marinette soup to her, though he seemed somewhat stricken after doing so.

“Cat? Everything okay?” she asked as the waiter left.

“Yeah, I just… gotta go to the bathroom,” he said. He got up and backed away towards the door, stammering a little as he spoke. “Might be a while - you know, gotta transform back, and then my kwami will complain about wanting a snack. But, uh, I’ll be back as soon as I can!”

With that he was through the door, leaving Ladybug blinking.

“Well, that works… I guess. I can get back to Adrien. Spots off.”

From her feet up, her suit faded away, and Tikki flew out of her earrings to land in her hands.

“Seems like things are going pretty well so far,” Tikki said, smiling up at Marinette.

“Yeah, it’s actually pretty fun. I hope Adrien hasn’t had to wait too long,” she said, biting her lip and looking at the door. She quickly looked back to her kwami. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine, Marinette, don’t worry. Let’s just get back to the table so I can get a snack from your bag and you can get back to your date with Adrien,” Tikki laughed. Marinette nodded and snuck back out of the door.

Cat Noir sighed with relief as he entered the bathroom and found it empty. Nonetheless, he locked himself into a stall before saying, quietly, “Claws in.”

“You’re two for two on the bathroom excuse. Better come up with something else fast or it’s all over,” Plagg said, floating up to Adrien’s eye level.. “And I don’t complain! I request. Speaking of which, cheese, please!”

Adrien rolled his eyes. “I ordered a side plate of camembert at the other table. I’ll slip you some there. Come on, I don’t want to keep Marinette waiting any longer.”

Marinette arrived back at the table and was confused to find that Adrien had not yet returned. She let Tikki out of her jacket to dive into her bag, just in time to be hidden as the waiter brought their soup.

“Hey, sorry about that,” Adrien said, appearing from behind the waiter. “Looks like I’m just in time! Thanks!”

They each sat back down and smiled across at each other.

“So… where were we?” Marinette asked.

The pair fell back into easy banter as if they’d not had a 15 minute gap, both glad the other wasn’t questioning their absence. Marinette asked Adrien about his recent photoshoots, which led to him asking about the bakery, which led to them discussing gaming.

“So how long did it take until you were beating your dad?” Adrien asked.

“He hasn’t beaten me since I was 8,” Marinette said, grinning. She was working hard to sound proud and confident, rather than bashful or boastful.

“That’s crazy. He and I will have to team up some time. You can have my dad on your team; he’s never played, he’ll be horrible, so it should balance out.”

As they laughed, the waiter brought over two more glasses of lemonade.

“For the “cute couple”. Courtesy of the gentleman at the bar,” he said, nodding as they thanked him.

Adrien craned his neck to look over at the bar, and Marinette turned round. Sitting at the end, holding a glass raised to toast, was Master Fu.

Adrien raised his glass back, smiling. Marinette panicked and froze, but still tried to lift her glass. The end result was she spilled most of her lemonade over herself.

“Marinette! Are you okay?” Adrien cried, half rising from his seat.

“Oh! Aha, whoops. I’m such a klutz. Don’t worry, it happens all the time,” Marinette said, nervously laughing the whole time. She stood up, picking up her bag. “I just need to go clean up… um, I might be a little while?”

“Take your time. I’ll be here,” Adrien said, smiling. She smiled back, and stayed on the spot, staring into his eyes - until she felt the lemonade drip onto her feet, at which point she turned and dashed off.

Locking herself in a bathroom stall, Marinette opened her bag to let Tikki out, quietly hissing, “Tikki, what is Master Fu doing here? And sending us drinks!?”

“Relax, Marinette, I’m sure it’s just a coincidence. And he’s only being polite,” Tikki said. Marinette nibbled her lip nervously.

“Okay... you’re… probably right. Let’s get back to Cat Noir. Good thing transforming will clean all this mess up,” Marinette sighed, looking down at herself. The front of her dress was completely sodden and clinging to her. “Tikki, spots on!”

Adrien looked around, noticing the old man who’d sent the drinks over watching him, but he looked away when Adrien caught his eye. Adrien snuck out to the stairwell.

“Is it just me, Plagg, or does the old man seem kind of familiar?” Adrien asked. He was surprised to find Plagg flustered by the question.

“Wh-what? Old man? N-no, I’m sure he was just being… nice? Never mind that now, I’m all filled up, totally ready to transform again, Adrien!”
Adrien frowned, but wasn’t willing to keep Ladybug waiting any longer to find out more.

Cat Noir made it back to their room before Ladybug, and held the door open to let in the waitress - Ladybug following closely behind her. As they sat and the waitress set two more bowls of soup on the table, Cat Noir realised the full impact of having dinner at two separate tables.

Ladybug was having the same realisation. Sure, the soup was good, and two bowls would probably be fine, but then there’d be mains, and desserts too… She’d have to pace herself.

To distract herself from the dilemma, she looked up at Cat Noir and asked, “So, was your kwami okay?”

Cat Noir paused for a moment, then grinned.

They carried on in the same manner all the way through their starters, right through finishing their mains, hopping back and forth between tables every ten minutes or so. Each time they switched they each politely ignored the other’s absence, simply grateful that neither of their partners were questioning their own absences.

Eventually, Marinette and Adrien managed to finish off their mains. Marinette sighed as she thought about the meal she had yet to finish with Cat Noir. Adrien, at least, was grateful that he realised he could cover part of his meal in cheese and Plagg was happy to help him with it, killing two birds with one stone. Tikki had turned her nose up at Marinette’s savoury food, so Marinette had had to sneak some of it away from the table when Adrien was gone to avoid disappointing him.

As he set down his cutlery upon finishing his main course, Adrien sighed happily, smiling at Marinette - though, was she imagining it, or was there a sadness in his eyes? - as he stood up.

“Hey, I’m gonna head to the bathroom and wash up a bit,” he said.

“Now? Right before dessert?” Marinette asked. She cocked her head to one side.

“What can I say? It’s the model in me,” Adrien said, shrugging and smiling. He added a wink then walked off towards the bathrooms.

Marinette blinked bemusedly, then gave a giggle. Adrien didn’t know Marinette had heard him use that line before.

She was about to step out to transform and finish up the main course with Cat Noir, when she heard her name.

“So, Marinette, I hope everything’s to your liking tonight?”

“Mrs Césaire!” Marinette called out, transitioning swiftly from shock and some frustration into excitement as she warmly greeted her best friend’s mother. Clearly, she was working that night, clad in her white chef’s jacket.

“I’ve not known you to dine here before, I’m glad you could finally try your namesake with us. How’s your evening going so far?” she asked, smiling.

Marinette paused for a moment, glancing down towards the private room at the far end of the restaurant.

Cat Noir sat, slowly finishing up the last few bites of his meal, sighing as he thought about dessert yet to come.

He was trying not to stare at the doors, settling instead to glance at them about every three seconds. He’d last headed back to his table with Marinette when Ladybug had left to deal with a “girl thing”. What, exactly, she may have meant by that he wasn’t clear on, but he knew it wouldn’t have made him uncomfortable; he just had the respect not to question her any further on it.

Still, he’d now come back and found she still hadn’t returned. He almost wanted to ask a waitress to go and check that she was okay, but thought better of it as he realised she’d probably had to transform back.

That didn’t stop his wistful sighs - both at missing Ladybug and hoping she’d return soon, and regret that he was sitting here by himself when he could have been back at the other table with Marinette. It had reached the point that, as much as he didn’t want to admit it, he wasn’t sure at which table he was having more fun.

It turned out Mrs Césaire had effectively been looking for Marinette’s approval on the recreation of her uncle’s famous dish. Once Marinette had assured her that she couldn’t have told the difference, Mrs Césaire quickly made her way back to the kitchen.

Marinette dashed out to transform again. Cat Noir, meanwhile, sighed, but decided Ladybug must need more time. He changed back, and Adrien made his way back across the restaurant.

As Adrien walked, he saw Ladybug approaching him. She noticed him at the same time. For half a second, each of them froze staring at the other. Adrien cursed his rotten timing, leaving just as Ladybug returned. Ladybug sighed to herself, wishing Mrs Césaire could have come over when Adrien was at the table, at least.

No sooner had they had these thoughts than they realised they could not justify stopping at the sight of the other, or reacting in any way. At least, Adrien thought so, forgetting in that moment that Ladybug was in fact an internationally renowned hero and he was totally within his rights to hesitate on sight.

Regardless, each carried on walking, greeting the other amicably as they passed. They each cringed once they’d passed.

Ladybug kicked herself as she pushed open the door to the empty room, and Adrien audibly groaned at the empty table. Before either of them could make a choice as to what to do next, knowing they each now had someone waiting for them while their other dates were absent, they heard their fellow patrons scream.

Oh good. That was all they needed tonight.

An akuma attack.

Chapter Text

Ladybug had quickly discovered that the akuma victim was a recently divorced father, upset over the prospect of losing his children. Marinette’s heart went out to the man, but the best way she had to help him was to free him of the akuma. Which is why it would be helpful for her partner to arrive…

“Sorry I’m late, my lady,” he said, pouncing onto the rooftop next to her. “I was actually… in the bathroom… and my kwami was not happy when I told him this was the real deal.”

“No worries, kitty. Let’s just find this akuma and get back in time for dessert,” Ladybug said, grinning. She pulled out her yoyo. “I think the akuma’s in his wallet. Let’s go!”

"Lucky charm!”

As always, Ladybug tossed the magical object - this time a baby doll - into the air, undoing the damaging effects brought on by the attack.

“Pound it!”

The pair held their fists together a moment longer than normal, smiling broadly. Then Ladybug’s earrings beeped their one minute reminder, as Cat Noir’s ring gave its three minute warning.

“Oh no, I’m about to transform back!” Ladybug said. She glanced over at the man, kneeling on the grass in the park, still recuperating, his children hugging him tightly.

“I’ll make sure they’re okay. You head back and get your kwami charged back up. I’ll meet you there as soon as I can,” Cat Noir said. Ladybug nodded, and swung off.

“Bug out!”

Cat Noir ran over just as the children’s mother arrived. He helped her see the impact this choice was having on all of the family, and she agreed to talk about joint custody.

Satisfied that they’d be okay, he vaulted himself into the air, back towards Le Grand Paris. He heard his ring’s next warning as he landed on the roof, swiftly heading down the stairs back to the restaurant.

He burst in and got a swift gauge of the situation. It seemed calm had resumed, and many people were already carrying on with their meals as though nothing had happened.

Marinette was stood at their table, looking around frantically. Her brows were knitted and she was nibbling on her lip.

She must be looking for him. He had to let her know he was okay; he had to stop her worrying, stop her being so upset. He had to make Marinette smile.

He dashed over to her, and she turned to face him. Her expression did not change, however.

“Marinette!” Cat Noir cried out, wrapping his arms around Marinette tightly. She didn’t hug back. “I’m sorry we got separated during all of that. I was so worried about you, I’m glad you’re okay. I’m absolutely fine, you don’t need to worry now either.”

He broke from the hug and grinned at her. She appeared stunned. He tried not to let it phase him, taking a seat and asking, “So, shall we order dessert?”

Cat Noir frowned as the look of shock and confusion on Marinette’s face only grew. Then he felt his soul fly up and out of his body, his blood draining and pooling in his feet, as his ring beeped its one minute warning.

“Actually, Cat Noir, I was… going to ask for your help finding my da- my friend, Adrien. I haven’t seen him since before the akuma attack,” Marinette said, slowly. She stepped around the table and looked down at him. Suddenly, she snapped to alert. “But you’re about to change back! Quick, get out of here!”

Cat Noir bolted to his feet and ran the length of the restaurant in just a few strides. He bowled through the door, grateful to find that Ladybug had yet to return from recharging her kwami. Just in case, however, he ducked beneath one of the other, empty tables in the room, and breathed deeply as he felt the transformation fall away.

“Well, that could have gone better,” Plagg sighed. He floated out of the ring and immediately flopped down onto the tiling beside Adrien.

“I can’t believe I just did that! Do you think Marinette’s going to figure out why I did that?” Adrien asked, desperate for a sign of hope that he’d not just given away his most important secret over something so simple as dinner with a friend.

“Hard to say, kid. But after the pair of you missed everything else tonight, I’d imagine you’re probably fine,” Plagg said. Adrien didn’t have time to ask him to explain himself before he heard the door creak open slowly.

“Cat?” he heard Ladybug call out into the quiet, darkened room. Some of the candles had burnt out now, while others were getting lower, most of the remaining light coming from the table. It gave the spot a cosy, intimate feel that Adrien wished he could simply enjoy with his lady in that moment.

“I’m here, Ladybug. But… but I’m not transformed. I’m sorry. I-”

“I know, Adrien,” she said softly, but still clearly enough to halt Adrien’s breath in his throat. After most of two meals and all of this, he was sure he was going to be sick.

“My lady, I’m so, so sor-”

“It’s okay. I- I’m not transformed either, Adrien. You- you should get out!”

For a split second, he could feel tears welling up in his eyes. Until she kept talking.

“No! Ahh, I mean- get out! From under the table! You should… come out, and, and look at me, and then we can-”

She was rambling. Utterly babbling. She made stumbling over her words sound like it was an art form. Adrien twitched. Only one person could fumble through her speech like this.

“Marinette!?” he cried out. He made to stand, and immediately hit his head on the table hard. He rolled onto his knees and crawled out. A tiny, pale hand was held out to him to help him up. His eyes followed her arm to her shoulder, and the strap of a red sundress with white lilies. His eyes kept moving up until they found her bluebell eyes.

She smiled timidly at him. “Hi kitty.”

Marinette pulled Adrien to his feet, and they stared at each other. Marinette had a sheepish grin, while Adrien’s jaw hung low.

“Wha- I- how?” he mumbled.

“Well, when you sat down at our table as Cat Noir like you were meant to be there it kind of clicked into place,” Marinette giggled.

“Yeah, but I-” He smiled, broadly. “You’re… it’s really… you’re really Ladybug?”

“Oh, for crying out loud, yes of course she is!” Plagg wailed, floating up between the pair, pushing them apart a few inches. “Tikki, get out here and help this boy see sense, will ya?”

“Plagg!” Tikki moaned, as she flew out too, smacking Plagg so hard he was knocked back into Adrien’s chest. “Don’t ruin this moment for them!”

“After all they’ve had us doing tonight!? Transforming over and over again to move between rooms when they were spending the whole evening together anyway!? I am entitled to be grumpy!”

Plagg fumed, but Tikki steered him away. “Let’s give them some privacy and find something to eat, deal?” He continued mumbling as Tikki steered him away, phasing through the wall. Adrien gaped after them.

“Wait,” he said, turning back to Marinette. His face was regaining some colour now, and his lips were gaining a curl. “So… so that means… all night… we’ve really… we’ve both been sneaking away from one table to go and meet up with each other at another table!?”

Marinette nodded, biting her lip as her grin grew. They collapsed into each other as the laughter burst over them. They soon collapsed to the floor in something of a heap, tearing up and going red in the face as the full absurdity of their situation hit them.

Once they were able to pull themselves together - once they needed to breathe again - they moved to sit cross legged, facing each other and smiling goofily.

“I just,” Adrien started, shaking his head. “I can’t believe I made plans with you so far in advance to make sure my schedule was clear, only to completely forget about why my schedule was clear.”

“I can’t believe I invited you out to dinner after getting so excited because you asked me out to dinner,” Marinette said, still grinning broadly even as her blush deepened.

“I can’t believe I was having so much fun with you tonight I almost forgot I had plans to have dinner with you,” Adrien said, starting to get his own matching blush. “Twice over, actually…”

“I can’t…” Marinette said, her breath catching. She looked away, took a deep breath, then looked firmly and directly at Adrien as she spoke. “I can’t believe I came here hoping to get closure with you tonight so I could give you a chance…”

Adrien’s eyes bulged, and he gulped. Her face was redder than her dress or her suit, but he knew his had to be redder. “I… I can’t…”

He closed his eyes for a moment, breathed in deeply, and opened them again. His eyes roamed over her hair. Her eyes. Her smile. “I can’t believe I never noticed… when I… when I can hardly ever bear to take my eyes off… either of you.”

Marinette gasped. Adrien sighed.

They both moved onto their knees, inching closer. Adrien’s hand cupped Marinette’s face as her hands wrapped around his neck. They leaned in.

“OH MY GOSH! I kissed you! I kissed Adrien Agreste on Valentines Day!” Marinette half-screamed in Adrien’s face. He chuckled.

“I don’t think that counts. I don’t remember it, for one. Why don’t you show me what it was like?”

A few minutes later and their lips gently pulled apart, though their foreheads stayed pressed together.

“You know, I don’t know about you, but I’m kinda full,” Adrien said. He grinned broadly as Marinette giggled, nodding.

“Want to skip dessert?”

Adrien left payment on the table. They weren’t exactly sure what they owed, so he left double their best guess and asked them to keep the rest as a tip. They snuck out to settle their other bill, then entered the elevator together hand in hand.