Work Text:
~(x)~
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Doki Doki...
Doki Doki...
Whack!
Ladybug let out a silent whimper and then rubbed the sore spot below her collarbones after smacking it so hard. She mumbled out silently the few curses she knew in Mandarin (the only words she knew in that language in all honesty), words that her mother would skin her alive for if she ever uttered them out loud in her presence and willed for the blood rushing to her cheeks to stop.
This was the umpteenth time now and it was starting to drive her teeth towards the edge. The heroine scowled at her partner like a child would at a jar of cookies that were placed on a shelf far too high for them to reach. Not that Chat Noir was unreachable.
Hell! If she wanted to, she could jump at him right now and permanently glue their lips together. The boy would swoon with indescribable joy!
Shaking her head, Ladybug exhaled through her nose sharply as if to scold her brain for concocting up the millionth...LadyNoir...fantasy. The teen directed her attention back at the catboy who was busy consoling their latest akuma victim.
The victim was a little girl, no older than four, maybe five. She was giggling at the funny faces that Chat Noir pulled to cheer her up, clapping her hands with a cute blush as the boy followed suit.
He was really kind and sweet...especially with the little ones...
Chat Noir would make such a loving father in the future. No doubt about it.
And perhaps...
A loving husband-
Ladybug's brain abruptly shut down on the spot and her legs immediately turned to jelly, causing her to trip over the roof tiles and fall off the building with as much beauty and grace as a headless chicken would have. The befuddled girl awaited her fate as a soon-to-be splat on the pavement, too disorientated to even use her damn yoyo-
"My Lady!"
Oh.
Forget about being a red and black polka-dotted splat on the dirt-crusted, grimy floor.
She's going to be a puddle of goop at this rate.
Holding her bridal style, was none other than her one and only Chaton. Suddenly, Ladybug was hypersensitive to every sound, smell and touch.
The way his strong, well-toned arms flexed under her thighs and waist, transferring a delicious warmth through her body like skin-on-skin contact...
The way his broad chest loomed over her entire being like a thick, fluffy blanket on a cold winter's night...
The way the crisp scent of outside lingered on him like a breath of fresh air, sending welcomed shivers down her spine...
Ladybug felt herself heat up from head to toe much to her dismay and she wouldn't be surprised if her face mirrored a tomato right now.
He's too close.
Way too close.
"Heh, I guess angels really do fall from the sky, hmm?" His voice came out as a dark, gravelly purr, causing the poor heroine's heart to go haywire and slam against her ribcage like a gymnast on twenty espresso shots.
Why did he have to say it like that!?
Not to mention the way his green eyes glinted under his long lashes in such an illegal way!
Absolutely unfair!
"Eh-erm-ugh- HMPH!" The word soup that spilt out of her lips as a response was the final nail to the coffin, forcing Ladybug to jump out of the confused boy's arms like his namesake. Her hands flailed around in odd gestures as Ladybug carried on trying to speak, only to fail with more stutters and awkward, fake laughs.
Dammit.
She's fallen for him.
And she's fallen for him hard!
When did this happen? How did this happen? Why did this happen?
Ridiculously unfair.
What's with her and stupidly kind blond boys with sinfully, beautiful green eyes!?
"AHAHA- I think I've left my pet crocodile unattended- Eek! Gottagobyehotstuff-" With a speed that could rival a racecar, Ladybug swung away without letting a bewildered Chat Noir utter as much as a word, screaming into the distance:
"I can't believe it's happening aga-aaaaaaaaaaaa..."
Noir stood still, gaping on the spot before bringing out his inner model and quickly composed himself, clutching his chin as a deep red blush barely peeked under his mask. One hand grasped his arm whilst the other cradled his chin as he bit down on a finger to see whether or not he was dreaming.
The sudden pain that ricocheted through the digit when his sharpened fang pierced the flesh snapped him back into reality and Chat Noir was left muttering in awe.
The awe then turned into a chuckle of endearment and a beautiful smile full of love took over as he shook his head and then faced the direction that his Lady vaulted off to.
"Dammit, Marinette...only you would give your identity away like that," His words came out as a soft whisper, unheard by anyone else. Relief lightened his shoulders of its burden from the months of dilemmas between loving two girls, only to find out they were one and the same. The relief was soon replaced with confusion and a touch of misery when he realised that she was treating him the way she treated his alter ego.
Like he's some sort of cold king who would bite off her head.
'Not that I would mind biting if she's into that- BUT ANYWAYS.' Chat Noir brushed off his not-so-innocent thoughts and his trademark optimism shined through when he concluded that he will do anything to make his Lady feel good around him.
Now, what to do with the supposed 'other boy' she likes...
"I'm going to die fighting for her even if it's the last thing I do. Couffaine? Kurtzberg? Whoever you are? I don't know which one of you is the other boy but no matter what, I'm marrying her..."
~(x)~
"Wanna tell me why you're starting to doodle that in the corner of your books now~?" A gleeful Alya held away the book from Dupain-Cheng as she nosely flickered through the pages with a smile wider than a Cheshire cat. Her free hand was preoccupied with pushing her flustered best friend's face away as she attempted to snatch her notebook back, whines and protests falling on deaf ears as the rest of the class made their way out of the room to go home.
Just another day to them all, much to their amusement.
"Speak any louder and you lose your macaron privileges, Alya!" Marinette reached for the book once more in a giant pounce, only for Césaire to duck and the former to end up upside-down in a pile of limbs against the wall. An adorable pout rested on her lips and her eyebrows furrowed when Alya's giggles turned into fully blown-out laughter.
"Don't worry Marinette, never have I told your secrets to anyone else, right?" The brunette's lips soon zipped shut guiltily as Marinette gestured her eyes towards Nino who helped her up along with Adrien, referring to Lahiffe's knowledge of Marinette's feelings for the shy blond teen. "That was only one time, girl~" Marinette's pout only deepened despite Adrien's chuckles.
"I think that's enough teasing our class president for today, Alya," The blond dusted off (the now blushing) Marinette, skimming his eyes down her body quickly to make sure she wasn't hurt. His Lady could be a tad bit too energetic sometimes. "What could possibly be written in there that provoked her into jumping on you like that?" He delivered a cheeky smirk, eating up the way Marinette gawked at him in betrayal and the way Alya's glasses glinted mischievously.
"Why you! It's a secret! No one needs to know and certainly not you!" The perplexed teen scoffed, flipping her hair before gesturing to Alya for her notebook back. Her cheeks were turning rosier and rosier and Adrien was dying with curiosity to know what mystery lay in that book.
"Oh? Now I really want to know," This time Nino snickered at Adrien's response, fully used to the boy's deviousness and inquisitiveness that could rival a cat. A side of the usually sweet, reserved boy that was kept hidden.
"S-So what? No one's allowed to know and Alya will sensibly hand me back my notebook. So, hah!"
"I don't know, it looks like she's more willing to hand it to me..."
"That's because you're egging her on!"
"Am I now?"
"You can be so infuriating, Agreste."
"Ouch. You wound me, Cupcake~"
Adrien flawlessly delivered a well-timed wink, relishing the way that Marinette was left in a flustered stupor before speeding towards Alya and grabbing the notebook with the heroine in disguise hot at his heels. He jumped over a few desks and dodged the benches with practised agility yet it was nearly impossible to shake Marinette off his tail. Though, the wide grin that could counter his alter ego's never left his face.
"Adrien! Give it back! Don't be such a brat- OOF!" Marinette found herself glomped by both Alya and Nino, the duo holding her down in a tight hug whilst the petite girl was left complaining and mustering all her strength to lift them both off of her.
Turns out that all the parkour and part-time hero-ing the boyfriend and girlfriend did occasionally gave them an advantage of extra vitality in their civilian sides.
So, Marinette resorted to begging.
"Adrien, ple-eeeeeeease..." Her eyes shimmered as if they belonged to a puppy, causing Adrien to falter on his steps and almost choke on his saliva.
'That's not fair, ma Princesse. You're too fucking cute and I won't be able to handle it any longer and the next thing you know, I'll be pushing you up against the wall and kissing you like no tomorrow-' Blinking back out of his thoughts, Adrien cleared his throat and looked away dramatically to avoid the sparkling baby blues.
"Open it, dude! Quick before Marinette pushes us off! I can feel ourselves slipping!" Nino groaned out, completely put off guard by Marinette's sudden determined strength and he and Alya scrambled to keep her held down.
The green-eyed boy didn't hesitate and ignored the defeated "Nooooo..." Marinette let out.
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A beat went past.
Sweat accumulated on Marinette's forehead as Adrien's face went through a variety of emotions whilst he skimmed through the book. First, his eyebrows were raised and his lips parted in bafflement. Then he squinted his eyes as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Next, his face became unreadable and his lips were pursed.
The only thing Marinette could hear was her heart pounding and the blood rushing through her face and ears.
She so was going to kill Alya once she's snapped out of her embarrassment.
.
"So...Marinette Dupain-Cheng Noir, huh?" Adrien rested the tip of the book against his lips as he raised a brow, sighing as Marinette stumbled through a couple of excuses. The girl in question shot up, victoriously pushing her friends off her and immediately snatched the book away, hugging it against her chest with a tight-lipped smile.
"I'm just testing my calligraphy skills! Nothing more!" Oooh, Adrien wasn't going to let her get away with that so easily. His lady seems to have a crush on him, Chat Noir him! And there's no way in hell he's going to let that go. However, he has a plan and he refuses to go off tangent.
"And the hearts? The doodles of you and Chat Noir holding hands? The names of your three future babies with him? Doesn't seem like calligraphy to me." The annoyed frown he purposely slipped out caused his three friends to let out silent gasps, taken aback by his serious expression.
Was he...jealous?
"A-Adrien...?" Marinette gulped as the boy was abruptly by her side, face lowered so that his cheek brushed hers. The girl couldn't help but enjoy the sensation of his soft, silky lips against the shell of her ear and almost jumped when he spoke again.
"Personally, I think Marinette Agreste has a nicer ring to it, don't you think?" His words were nothing but a low whisper, a husky tone that sounded so scandalous and drove Marinette's hormones to the extreme, evident in the way her knees almost buckled beneath her.
Totally unfair!
How the heck was she supposed to react!?
Adrien pulled away, frown still in place and then squeezed Marinette's upper arms with a nod but then leaned in again, eyes narrowed and the strands of his hair mingling with her fringe as their foreheads shared a tender kiss.
"I'm not losing you to some cat boy." His emerald greens twinkled intensively, lips only a breath away from hers that Adrien couldn't help but graze Marinette's lower lip with his thumb. He finally turned around and made his way out of the door, beckoning his jaw-dropped best friend to come along.
A pinch on her thigh- most likely from Tikki who for some reason was hiding in Marinette's trouser pocket, brought her back to the world and before anyone knew it, the girl held Adrien back by the wrist. It was rare for her to initiate physical contact so Adrien couldn't help but halt with surprise.
Marinette brushed off all her embarrassment and muddled feelings, fixing a glare at her nonchalant-looking good friend.
"He's not just some cat boy. He's one of the most kindest and strongest people I know! He's saved my life more times than I can remember, saves Paris on a daily basis and without him...there would be no Ladybug! So don't...don't just dismiss Chat Noir like that."
Adrien furrowed his brows, holding his burning stare against her stern eyes for a bit before leaning in once more, taking Marinette's grip off his wrist and then holding her hand in his possessively. The tight squeeze he gave the appendage didn't go unnoticed by the girl and the rest of the audience.
"Sorry...I'm just sick of other boys turning your head towards them...when I've been hoping for you to glance at me, just once...for a long time..." His voice wavered between vulnerable and melancholy before settling his face to determination.
Without missing a beat, the boy swiftly kissed the corner of Marinette's lips, cherishing every groove and warmth that emitted from her and then promptly stalked out of the classroom before anyone else could see him turn redder than a strawberry.
'At this rate, she should figure out my civilian identity soon. She has to! With a declaration like that, I should be on her mind for a bit and maybe...she could develop feelings for my civilian side too...?' A hopeful grin took place on his lips whilst Nino ran after him and babbled about how shaken he was by the blond's actions.
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Meanwhile, poor Marinette was left frozen in the classroom, wheezing like a kettle and cheeks brighter than a traffic light while Alya squealed with happiness, thanking Dieu that she captured everything on her phone.
"So, Marinette? Will it be Adrien or Chat Noir~?" Alya's question was met with a defeated wail and a slap against her shoulder. The brunette couldn't keep the devilish smirk off her face.
"He's been waiting for me to glance at him!? Is he BLIND!? I have been drooling over his stupid self for like a YEAR! Ugh, Alya! What am I gonna do-ooooo?"
~(x)~
She should be suited up right now in her signature spots.
She should be battling the akuma right now who was preoccupied with setting fire to everything he saw like a madman.
But no.
"Ma Princesse...just dump me somewhere in an alleyway and run! Please..." Chat Noir, who was terribly injured, grimaced as Marinette kept on running, fingers digging into the boy's legs as she held him piggyback style. She thanked the kwamis that she was familiar with the thirteenth arrondissement like the back of her hand.
She merely huffed as a response and sped up before finally finding a decent hiding spot in the abandoned Chinatown. Much to her delight, the pharmacy shop where her Maman usually goes to was empty and open so Marinette didn't hesitate to storm inside. The groans and whimpers that the hero let out as she gently placed him against a chair shattered her heart and the teen couldn't help but wince at his injuries.
"You stupid...stupid cat! Why did you take that hit for me? You should have dodged!" Marinette spat out, masking her pain with anger as she gathered the medical kit with a mission to alleviate her partner's wounds. The boy responded with a cocky smirk as if his shoulder wasn't burnt to a crisp and his legs weren't shredded with gashes.
This akuma was the first to pierce the magical suit and it was taking everything for Marinette to not fall into a panic attack. Not even the battle on heroes' day was this nerve-wracking.
"I like my women alive, not barbecued." Noir rasped but then yelped as Marinette knelt down to his level and applied ointment to the burns. This time, tears streamed down his eyes and his claws dug into the plush carpet below him. His faux ears plastered themselves against his hair and his tail whipped against the chair and wall beside him as if to emphasise how much pain he was in.
"Stupid flirt...stupid cat...always have to be so self-sacrificing...what if that hit killed you!? What would Ladybug have done then!?" Dupain-Cheng sobbed, letting her forehead flop onto Chaton's uninjured shoulder. Her arms wrapped around his middle, squeezing the blond against her as tight as she could whilst he helplessly reciprocated her actions.
He soothed her with hushes and encouraging whispers, combing his claws through her loose tendrils, pulling her flush against his body whilst his face remained in the crook of her neck so that the sweet scent that lingered on her body kept him grounded. The next words that he uttered momentarily stopped her heart.
"If I didn't take that hit, there would be no Ladybug..."
The duo stiffened, the younger of the two plagued with multitudes of questions. Marinette wanted to pinch herself, hoping that she misheard what he said but the strong smell of antiseptic that filled the room, the atrocious scent of burnt flesh and blood and the warm, secure arms that kept her in an iron hold proved otherwise.
"I...How...?" Marinette gasped, pulling back far enough so that she could see her partner's bashful face. "I was so careful and...and...dammit! Either I released my transformation in front of you by accident or you're one stupidly smart cat!" The ebony-haired teen was far too emotionally exhausted to delve into this and simply accepted her fate.
He knew now.
This time, there's no time or space to come up with another convoluted plan to knock him off the trail like that time when Madame. Mendeleiev got akumatised and she had to wield the mouse miraculous.
"I'm a clever cat, your clever Chaton, My Lady," Chat Noir couldn't help but gaze down at Marinette lovingly, eyes softened and heart racing. The raspberry hue that took place on her cheeks did wonders to him. "Maybe, if we were strangers, I wouldn't have found you as quick-"
He wasn't able to finish his sentence as two fingers were pressed against his lips.
"It's...it's dangerous enough that you know who I am...I can't know who you are, mon Minou. Master Fu-"
"-Is wrong. He's just as capable of making bad decisions as anyone else. That time he took Plagg and Tikki away from us out of fear is proof of that. I firmly believe that the idea of us not knowing who the other is for the sake of our safety is pretty much bullshit at this rate." He kissed her fingers, eyes never leaving hers in a gaze so intense that Marinette felt like her entire body was lit up in flames. "We've been partners for a long time, our trust in each other is beyond comprehensible and you know for a fact that I'd rather die than waver my loyalty to you, Marinette." He pulled her towards him in another embrace, burying his nose into the nape of her neck and letting his lips trail on the soft, sweet skin with butterfly kisses.
The kiss burned more than the fire that the akuma plagued Paris. Each and every pucker took Marinette's breath away and the way he tugged her hair so that he could have access to her throat was downright sinful. When his teeth grazed the sensitive area below her ear, Marinette's eyes fluttered closed and a soft sigh escaped her lips.
"Chat Noir..." Her voice would have been inaudible had it not been for the boy's heightened hearing. This of course encouraged a deep purr to rumble from the hero and his lips got closer and closer to hers...
"My name...say my name, Marinette," Chaton's lips brushed against Dupain-Cheng's as he spoke, voice so hoarse and exposed. Familiarity filled Marinette from head to toe but she couldn't for the love of god figure out why. Instead, she frowned and bowed her head down in defeat.
"I don't...I don't know..." She raised her head back up when Chat Noir tsked in response, squeezing her tighter. "Mon Minou..." The familiarity was starting to weigh down on her like a boulder and it was driving Marinette crazy.
"Find me. Please. I love you...all of you. If you're not going to let me tell you who I am then you have to find me. You're a smart girl, My Lady. So smart. I can see that you're close to figuring it out." He kissed her cheeks softly and then darted back to her neck, this time to distribute an open-mouthed kiss and suck the skin hard.
"Chat Noir!?" Marinette gasped, face rouged and teeth biting down her bottom lip to avoid any shameful sounds from coming out of her throat. When he pulled away, Marinette bumped her forehead against his with irritation, scoffing at his pained yelp. "What was that for!? O-ooooooh if the cleansing light doesn't heal this, how am I going to explain this to my parents? Alya? AH- and Adrien!? He's going to be so annoyed..."
It took everything for Chat Noir to hide his smirk, rubbing his fingers against Marinette's hips.
"Then he'll know that ma Princesse is off limits, no~?"
"Stupid, possessive, blond, idiots!"
"Hey, I'm smart, not stupid like model boy,"
"UGH! Fuck you!"
"Is that an offer?"
"JUST SHUT UP AND LET ME BANDAGE YOU BACK UP SO THAT WE CAN KICK THE AKUMA'S ASS AND THEN I'LL KICK YOUR ASS YOU STUPID ALLEY CAT!"
"That wasn't a no~"
~(x)~
Adrien gawked in horror from the doorway when the scarf that was wrapped around Marinette's neck unravelled and spilt onto the floor. The girl quickly slapped her hand against her neck to hide the hickey but she couldn't avert her eyes from his.
It was just the two of them in the locker room.
Probably the two few remaining students in the building since they had extracurricular activities.
"OH- Erm...hi, Adrien? I was not expecting to see you here hahah! Did you manage to finally beat Kagami this time or-" Marinette ended her default babbles with a squeak as the blond-haired teen stormed towards her, peeling her hand off her neck only for his eyes to widen at the 'gift' that the cat bestowed.
"Marinette...you chose him?" The boy laid out the kitten eyes, internally cackling at the way his Lady scrambled for words. Plagg may have warned him of the rage of a Ladybug but Dieu, the shit-eating cat inside him couldn't help but keep up the tease. Sure, acting jealous of his alter ego wasn't going to be much help in Marinette solving his identity but at the same time, he didn't want to make this too easy for her.
It wasn't fair that he's fallen head over heels for both sides of her since the beginning and struggled with those feelings for such a long time while it's only recently that she began crushing on his vigilant half, right?
To summarise, he was the equivalent of a naughty, bratty kitten trapping a bug under his paws and he loved every second of it.
"I haven't chosen anyone- not yet...I...I don't know what to do." Now, a tiny bit of guilt was gnawing on Adrien's chest. Maybe he's gone a bit too far? "The two of you have thrown me in quite a loop, confessing left and right..." Her sweet blush wiped the guilt off his chest clean. Maybe...simple, ordinary and timid Adrien Agreste has a chance?
Just maybe...she's starting to have feelings for him too...?
"Has he kissed you?" Adrien leaned closer, placing his hands against the locker that Marinette was backed up against, pinning her in place. Forward but not aggressive. With the way she eyed him beneath her lashes, his actions were more than happily received.
"Not really..."
"Can I kiss you?" His lips were barely brushing hers now.
"...Please,"
Immediately, their lips crashed into one another without any finesse. All pent-up feelings, all raging emotions, all were expressed in this one, deep kiss like a ferocious fire. Adrien tangled his fingers with Marinette's, pressing his body tight against hers and tilted his head ever so slightly to deepen the kiss.
Heat and hormones drove their bodies on autopilot. Marinette moved her arms around his neck, slipping her digits through Adrien's hair whilst the boy in her grasp wrapped his arms around her waist, hands wondering dangerously low and cupping every part of her with desperation.
The familiarity that laid low in Marinette's mind soon jumped back by ten folds as sharp teeth nipped the rim of her lips, parting the soft pair so that his tongue could slip in and bring her even closer. Her mind kept on rebooting at every touch, every nibble, every sound, every kiss until she forgot her own name.
Suddenly, a small hiss of pain escaped Adrien's throat, causing Marinette to break the kiss, heaving and noticing that he was edging his shoulder away from her fingers.
"Adrien...?"
"Ignore it." The boy grunted, slamming his lips back onto hers, this time cupping her cheek with one hand and pulling the bands of her hair so that he could comb his fingers through the smooth, silky locks. Familiarity stroke back to Marinette despite the distracting, excitable kiss.
Adrien began to trail his lips south, parallel to the hickey that Chat Noir left till he reached the area below her collarbones. Unlike his roaring passion that started the kissing session, Adrien ended it with a sweet, subtle kiss on her skin. The way Marinette heaved and panted sent many thoughts and fantasies to the dishevelled boy's head, concluding that he indeed needed to take a cold shower as soon as he got home.
"Adrien..." Marinette breathed out sweetly, cheeks flushed beyond compare and fingers tangled with the fabric of his shirt as she struggled to stay upright.
"That's my name," Adrien cutely bumped his nose with hers and then backed off, a smirk growing when she slid down the locker and onto the floor in a daze. "I'll see you around, ma Princesse," With a wink, the boy patted her cheek and then slinked off with that enviable model grace of his.
A few minutes went past yet Marinette refused to move. Adrien's last few words kept circling in her mind.
'That's my name- that's what he said. But why did he say that? That's such a weird thing to say, right? And since when did he start calling me Princesse-'
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Insert a record scratch.
Tikki, the poor kwami who had to witness the entire endeavour simply shook her head with a sigh, praying that her holder didn't murder Plagg's kitten.
"DAMMIT ADRIEN AGRESTE! FUCK YOU!!!!"
"At least take me out to dinner first~!" The stupid boy's voice came from the window outside the locker room and Marinette didn't think twice before running towards it to see his shit-eating grin plastered on his face from below.
~(x)~
"So all this time you were in love with civilian me, ever since I gave you my umbrella?"
"Mmhm."
"And you were suppressing your feelings for cat me for around the same time?"
"Yep."
"So basically I was being an absolute, obtuse idiot who's been cockblocking myself?"
"Uh-huh."
"Wow. Well, fuck me!"
"After the days of grief you've given me in choosing between you and you, you don't even deserve a kiss let alone getting laid."
"Dammit...so...you gonna untie me now or are ya gonna leave me hanging upside down on the tower forever...?"
"Heh~ you're gonna stay there and rot till eternity, mon Chaton."
"NoooOOooOOoOOooooo..."
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~(x)~