Chapter Text
Chat Noir stopped on a rooftop letting out a sigh and bringing a hand up to his eyes to wipe away the remnants of his tears. He shifted on his feet to turn in a slow circle to get his bearings straight once again his bag across his back shifting with him. He hadn’t meant to run blindly across Paris but that was exactly what he did.
His lip curled up in a small snarl when he faced towards the direction of the mansion that was supposed to be his home but was more like a prison. Quickly he turned away from it trying to pick where he wanted to go.
He couldn’t go to Nino’s, not that he didn’t think the other would gladly have him but because it would be the first place his father looked. If his father even bothered to look. He couldn’t go to Chloe’s for a number of reasons number one being he didn’t want to go there. He sighed. Alya had curious little siblings and he was sure Alya would accidentally let it slip if he went there.
Marinette?
Chat turned towards the direction of his friends home and took off again. Marinette was good at keeping a secret and he knew she’d let him hide out there for a while. She had helped Adrian when he wanted to see his mothers film and had helped Chat with Evillustrator and a couple of other Akumas when his Lady couldn’t be there right away.
Yes he could trust Marinette almost as much as he could Ladybug. And it didn’t hurt to be able to get to know her better. Even though they have been friends for a couple of years now she was still nervous around his civilian self, though the stuttering had gotten better he mused. He briefly debated to himself which self he should be when asking for help before deciding that being Chat would be best. For now.
The bakery came into view and he smiled seeing Marinette on her balcony leaning over the railing looking out over the city. He used his baton to volt to the roof behind her. Unfortunately with bag across his back he didn’t land as quietly as he wanted but he still had the effect he had hoped for as Marinette jumped spinning around at the sound of him landing.
“Hello Purrincess!” He said with an amused smile as he jumped down onto her balcony landing just a bit in front of her.
“Ch-Chat?! What are you doing here?” She asked him seeming to calm herself after seeing that it was him.
“What? Can’t a Cat just drop by on his Purrincess to see how she’s doing this feline evening?” He said tilting his head slightly.
“No, Er yes? I don’t know.” She quickly her face full of confusion before her eyes landed on his bag. “What’s with the bag? You going somewhere?” She asked looking back to his eyes.
He gave a soft sigh and rubbed the back of his neck. “Well uh…” he gave a frustrated growl thinking about what happened again. “It’s just so hard!” He finally said throwing both his hands up. “Between saving Paris, going to school and work! It’s was bound to happen really between all that something was gonna give,” He said not realizing that he was pacing the small space of the balcony as his mouth word vomited his frustrations out in the open to Marinette. “I didn’t even realize I had done it or well not done it I guess. Not until father was screaming at me in his office!” He let out another growl and pulled slightly at his blond locks before rubbing at his neck to calm the tension starting to settle there. “And He was telling he was going to pull me from school and keep me home where I couldn’t do anything but work and school work. I wouldn’t be able to see my friends because god forbid I have them and their apparent bad influence according to him. And all of this over me missing an assignment or two and my grade dropped a bit but not like so bad it wouldn’t be to hard to pull it back up…” He said and let out a shaky breath feeling a brush against his mind letting it comfort him that Plagg was trying to calm him in his own way while still transformed. “… and I don’t know I lost it. I got mad and I guess being around Plagg so much and having cat like qualities now I yelled back for the first time.” He sighed and stopped pacing closing his eyes not wanting to look at Marinette at the moment not wanting to see her reaction to his long winded rant. “I guess he didn’t expect it because father just stared at me and I could see his rage building in his eyes and I just turned tail… I ran. I ran to my room and tore it apart. Princess you don’t know how bad I just wanted to Cataclysm the whole room. I had to get away from there I didn’t want be caged up and shut away from everyone and everything… not again. So I packed this bag and left… I left my phone Er well I threw my phone at my door before I left.” He did look up now seeing surprise and worry on his friend face. “And well… I ran and I didn’t really have an idea on where to go. My civilian friends my father would go to first and I don’t want to go back, not yet anyways, and then… well I thought of you. And how you’ve helped me out before and I thought…” a blush built up on his cheeks and he shifted embarrassed on his feet at how ridiculous his thought process was now. He really hadn’t thought about it at all but he wasn’t one to back down once he started something. “Well I thought maybe you might help me out again? I’ll stay out of the way and I won’t bother you. I’ll even clean or do anything you want me to I just… I just need somewhere to sleep and have Plagg recharge and and oh! I can pay you! I have some cash that I grabbed it was for food bu-”
“Chat. Chat. Oh my… CHAT!”
Oh she had been calling his name several times to get his attention. He immediately shut up his embarrassed rambling to look at her. He gave her his best kitten eyes hoping that she would let him stay.
She shook her head letting out a sigh and he readied himself for rejection his cat ears dropping slightly on his head. “Silly Chatton. Of course you can stay. That’s what friends are for right?”
He stared at her dumbly for a moment before his face broke out in a wide grin and he rushed to her grabbing her up in a hug. Marinette gasped in his arms, letting out the most beautiful sound he’s ever heard, giggling as he spun her around. He smiled and purred lowly as he sat her back down on her own feet. “Thank you so much! You are the best friend and Purrincess this cat could ever ask fur.” He said pulled back slightly from the hug to grin down at her.
“Oh shush you silly kitty. I bet you say that to all the girls.” Marinette said with a blush and looked away.
“What? No I don’t. You are my Princess and no one else.” He said his tail swishing behind him slightly. He didn’t like the thought of Marinette thinking he’d go around calling every girl his princess. But why didn’t he like that thought? He’d have to think about that latter.
“What about Ladybug?” She asked looking at him from the corner of her eye not turning her head to fully look at him.
“Well...” he shifted on his feet. “Ladybug is My Lady and always will be but you are my Princess. And if you let it you’ll always be MY Princess the one and only.” He said smiling down at her.
Her blush grew brighter and she smiled at him before shoving him slightly making him take a half step back. “Come on Chatton lets go in. It’s getting dark and not all of us have a super suit to keep out the cold.” She said and he dropped his arms from around her as she stepped back and around him to get to the skylight leading down to her room. “Careful coming down. I don’t want your dirty paws on my bed.” She said over her shoulder with a soft laugh before she dropped down onto said bed.
He laughed lightly to before he hummed slightly looking down at her bed and her room. He took his bag off his back and let it drop down before he followed after it making sure to move so that he landed on his back and bounced to land standing on the beds platform. He heard clapping below him and smirked giving a small bow to Marinette before grabbing his bag and hopping down to join her on the main floor of her room.
“You can sleep on the chaise lounge I have some extra pillows and some blankets in the chest here that you can use.” She said going over to said chest pulling out a couple of blankets and two pillows for him.
He smiled and placed his bag down next to the lounge and took the items from her. “Thank you again princess. I really do promise to stay out of your way. And I promise to not be here unless you are here.” He said smiling down at her.
Marinette shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. Like I said that’s what friends are for and you are my friend. Plus it’s not like I could allow you to be a stray god knows what that would do to you even if it is for a short while.” She said and watched him lay out the pillows and blankets on the lounge they way he wanted them. She then frowned slightly looking him over watching his tail sway behind him in small sweeps. “Ummm. Chat?”
Chat hummed looking over at his friend and frowned slightly as he saw the frown on her face his tail falling still. “Yes Marinette?”
“Your suit won’t hold forever. How are we supposed to keep your secret identity… well a secret?”
Chat blinked at her before frowning deeper he hadn’t thought of that. He cursed quietly and stood straighter putting his hands on his hips. “I hadn’t honestly thought of that. I didn’t think of anything really. Planning and thinking is My Lady’s forte.” Plagg wouldn’t be able to hold the transformation all night and he would need to recharge often if he even tried.
Marinette gave a soft hum before smiling. “You think it will hold for about an hour?” Chat blinked at her and nodded looking curiously at her as she quickly turned around pulling fabric and ribbon and something else he didn’t get a good look at before she was at her desk and sitting into her chair. He smiled watching her legs easily cross into the chair with her and she set to work.
He was curious but he had promised to stay out of the way so he simply sat on the lounge. He looked around the other room quietly taking note of everything. He didn’t get the chance any of the other times he was here, in and out of the mask, and now was a perfect time. He smiled seeing a few posters of his civilian self on the walls along with some photos of them with Alya and Nino and even more sketches of her designs on the wall above her desk.
“Me and Alya had gone to a costume party last Halloween.” Marinette said catching his attention and filling the silence. He hummed in acknowledgement as he looked over at her working. He had remembered the party and remembered being annoyed at Chloe for being well Chloe towards his friends. “Yeah so like Alya picked out who we should be and all and I made the masks and the simplified costumes. Anyways I kept some of the failed masks and I think this one should fit your face close to how your current one does. I’m just reworking it and replacing the fabric.” She explained before humming and tilting her head slightly and looked over at him with a searching look.
He blinked at her and smiled slightly confused by the look before she turned back to her small project in her hands pulling the ribbon into the fray. He watched from afar fighting down his curiously and forcing himself to stay seated as the girl worked on the mask. He did feel quite happy with the thought that his princess was making a mask especially for him and his tail swished slightly over the side of the lounge.
She was done well before an hour was up. They had talked about little things like how he was going to get the make up work from his teachers the next day. When she finished she grinned over at him and hopped from her chair over to him. “What do you think?” She asked showing him the mask in her hands.
He looked down at the offered mask and grinned and ran his hand over the soft feeling fabric. He gently took the mask in his own hands and felt the inside had been worked with a soft lining so that it wouldn’t rub or bother his face as he moved around. On the other side was faux black leather and the edges and around the eyes where hand stitched with a green thread that matched his eyes color and the ribbons that would hold the mask on where the same green. He smiled and looked over the masked finding her initials faintly stitched around part of both eyes. He grinned up at her. “I love it! It will do purrfectly.”
Marinette rolled her eyes at his pun. “Oh! Hold on a second!” She said before jumping back up and quickly going up to her bed. He watched tilting his head and stood trying to see just what she was trying to get. He only saw a price of clothing (a shirt or jacket maybe?) before she came back to him. “Here I made this a while ago. I usually sleep in it but you can use it while you are here.” She said and shyly gave him the clothing.
He blinked and placed the mask around his wrist letting slide down his arm so that he could grab the clothing. It was a hoodie like he thought but he was certainly surprised at what it was of. The hoodie was made to look like his suit. The draw string to the hood was a gold colored cord to match his bell and pocket had a bright green paw print on one corner. The hood even had ears that stood up easily on their own and they even had silver studs on the sides like his own had. He poked the stud slightly and found that the whole ear could be removed if the person wanted. On the inside of the hood he noticed was bright red. Ladybug red with black polka dots. He checked his suspicions and found that the hoodie could easily be turned inside out to be a ladybug centric hoodie. He grinned excitedly. “You made this?! This is amazing Marinette!” He said looking over to her seeing her blush under his words. “You are going to be an amazing designer one day!” He said grinning back at the hoodie. He noticed the bottom of the hoodie had a zipper that went most of the way around the bottom of the hoodie. He looked at Marinette with a confused look and she stepped closer to him taking the zipper and slowly brought it around to the back and allowed the piece to fall. His eyes widened seeing that it made a tail as it fell and hung from the back a bright green bottom revealed as the black part fell away. He quickly bounced on his feet in excitement. “Princess this is wonderful and so perfect! Do you have any more themed clothes that you’ve made?” He asked beyond excited at this point.
“Yes and no. I’ve got some designs in the works but they are not all the way done yet.” She said blushing under his complements. “I’m glad you like it.”
“Like it? I love it Princess!” He said just before his ring gave a loud beep. “Oh.” He looked down at his ring and felt another brush to his mind. “I guess Plagg is tired of waiting.” He said giving a soft chuckle.
“Well why don’t you transform back in here and I’ll go see if Mamman and Papa have dinner ready. I’ll tell them I brought in a stray to join us.” She said with a small laugh before leaving down the trap door. “I’ll come get you in a few!” She called back up before shutting the door.
Chat smiled watching her leave and waited a minute or so before he released his transformation putting his hands out to quickly catch the little black Kwami. “You okay buddy?” He asked.
“I need cheese!” Plagg whined rolling in his chosen’s hands.
Adrien rolled his eyes at his Kwami and dropped his hands forcing the little god to float. ”I’ll have to see if they have any for you.” He said as he grabbed the mask to put it on. He made sure the robins where tight so that the mask would not move before pulling the hoodie on over his head. “What do you think Plagg?” He asked looking at his Kwami doing a quick turn to show the whole thing off. The little tail swinging out as he turned.
Plagg gave a hum turning his attention back to Adrien from what ever had grabbed it. “Princess sure does have a lot of talent.” The little god finally spoke after a minute.
“Princess is my name for her come up with your own nickname.” Adrien said a slight growl to his voice as the trap door opened again Marinette coming back into the room.
“Sorry I heard you talking. Figured you’d be done.” She said and then smiled at Plagg when the Kwami flew to her face with a inquisitive look. “Hello you must be Plagg.” She said.
“Pigtails.” Plagg said nodding to himself. “You will be Pigtails since someone doesn’t want me calling you princess.” He gave Adrien a sideways look before looking at Marinette again who had a slightly amused look on her face. “So Pigtails do you have any cheese that I may have?”
“You… you are being polite. What the heck? Your are demanding with me all the time! Where was this all this time?” Adrien said looking at his Kwami with a fake glare but still was annoyed.
“I’ll have you know I like Pigtails more than I like you. So SHE gets my good manners. Be lucky I don’t scratch your face for cheese.” Plagg shot back.
“But you have done that!”
Marinette laughing brought them back to the now and they both smiled at her shyly. “Sorry Princess.” “Sorry Pigtails.”
“Yes, Plagg, I have some cheese. I’ll bring some up for you would like anything else?” She said reaching out to pet the little god between his ears.
Plagg let out a low purr of approval. “Cookies?” He whispered finally giving the girl a small knowing look. Marinette nodded and smiled back. “Of course. Come on Chat let go eat.” She said not giving the blonde much of a choice but to follow. He gave Plagg a backwards glance watching the Kwami fly off somewhere in the room.
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