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Chapter Text

Marinette was used to it. She was used to the way Lila could spout off lie after lie and everyone would believe her. She was so used to it that she’d simply stopped caring about any of it. If her friends wanted to be taken in by Lila’s lies, then that was their own choice. Marinette had done her best to enlighten them, and all it had ever done was make her friends trust Lila even more. Lila could say or do whatever she wanted. Marinette didn’t care anymore.

But there was one line Marinette would not let her cross.

It was mid-afternoon, and Marinette was anxious for school to be over. There was this design that she’d finished drawing during lunch and couldn’t get her mind off it. Checking the clock again, she reminded herself that there was less than an hour until she could leave, go home, and get started making the dress.

To her relief, someone stuck their head in the classroom and explained that they needed to borrow the teacher for a moment. Once the teacher had left the room, Marinette quickly pulled out her sketchbook and began looking at the design again, trying to find any flaws she may have missed before. She was so distracted by the task that it took her a minute to realize that the rest of the class had taken advantage of the teacher’s absence as well.

Finally, the sound of Lila’s annoying voice cut through her concentration. Marinette rolled her eyes, trying to block it out again, when Lila’s next statement made her heart nearly stop.

“And I tried to explain that I wasn’t interested, but Chat Noir just wouldn’t listen.”

Marinette’s grip tightened on her pencil. Surely she must have heard wrong.

Lila continued. “Then, when I tried to walk away, he kissed me.”

Marinette’s control broke. She stood up, design completely forgotten, and turned to Lila.

“You little liar.”

Lila, and the girls surrounding her, all turned to Marinette in shock. But even as angry as she was, Marinette didn’t miss the look of satisfaction that flitted across Lila’s face. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except the lies that horrible girl was saying about Chat.

“Why would you say such a thing, Marinette?” Lila’s look of shocked hurt fooled most of the class, but not Marinette. “Of course I’m not lying.”

“There is no way Chat Noir would ever do that. He would never kiss someone without their consent.”

Lila’s face crumpled—just the right amount—and she sniffled. “First I get assaulted by Chat Noir, and now you’re calling me a liar?”

That was it. Not even thinking about it, Marinette moved away from her desk and began to march towards Lila. A hand reached out to grab her wrist, the grip gentle but firm, and Marinette spun around. Her anger didn’t abate as she saw who had stopped her.

“Let it go, Marinette,” Adrien said. “It isn’t worth it.”

Marinette would have never thought it possible, but her feelings towards Adrien in that moment were very close to hate. She ripped her arm out of his grasp.

“Chat Noir is always worth it.”

His arm fell limply to his side as he stared at her in shock. Disgusted, Marinette turned back to the real problem. No one stopped her this time as she closed the distance between herself and Lila’s desk.

“You take it back right now,” she ordered, glaring down at Lila. “Admit to everyone that you’re lying.”

“Why would I do that when I’m not lying. You all know how Chat Noir is. He flirts with everyone and practically forces himself on Ladybug.”

“You lying, piece of—”

“Marinette!”

Although Alya’s words had stopped her from completing that thought, Marinette didn’t pay her friend any more attention as she tore back into Lila.

“You can lie about me. You can lie to my friends. You can lie about anything you want. But you will never ever lie about Chat Noir like this again.”

Lila placed a hand on her chest. “Marinette, I don’t understand why you’re saying all this. I’m the victim here. Ladybug would back me up if she were here. Chat Noir’s probably kissed her against her will tons of times.”

Everyone jumped as Marinette’s fist landed on the table. “If Ladybug were here, she’d say what a lying sack of trash you are. Chat Noir would never do anything like that. You and everyone else in this room owe him your lives. How could you lie about him like this?”

At that, someone else finally found the courage to speak up and join in the conversation. “Isn’t it really Ladybug that we owe? Chat Noir doesn’t really do much. He’s just the sidekick.”

Marinette was practically vibrating with rage as she turned on the rest of the room. She couldn’t even register who had spoken—she was too furious. She barely took in Adrien’s pale face and Alya’s wide eyes before she shared with the class exactly what she thought about that idea.

“Chat Noir is every bit of the hero that Ladybug is. In fact, he’s even more of one. Ladybug would be dead if it weren’t for Chat Noir. He’s sacrificed himself for her so many times, and yet none of you give him the appreciation he deserves. He is ten times the person any of you are.”

She turned back to Lila. “And that’s why you are never going to say such lies about him again, Lila. Never.”

“Is that a threat?” Lila asked, her eyes extra wide for effect.

“You bet your lying little ass it is.”

The teacher chose that moment to return. She’d missed Marinette’s words, but she didn’t fail to notice that some sort of drama was happening.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng. Sit down.”

Giving Lila one last glare, Marinette returned to her seat, smirking about the genuine wariness she had seen on Lila’s face. Marinette had a feeling Lila wouldn’t be messing with her kitty again.

For the small amount of time left before the final bell, the class sat shell-shocked. It wasn’t every day they saw Marinette Dupain-Cheng go off like that. She was usually so sweet and mild-mannered! And it wasn’t just her words that had shocked them—but how she’d delivered them. It was a side they’d never seen before. Not even Alya.

When the end of the school day arrived, half the class rushed out of their seats—even faster than normal—while the other half just sat there, still in shock. After the first wave of students left, Lila was the first to stand up.

Marinette, still nearly boiling over with rage on her partner’s behalf, met the girl’s gaze as she stood. An unspoken communication passed between them, and for the first time ever, Lila looked away first, unable to hold the gaze. To everyone’s surprise, she left the classroom without another word.

Once she was gone, Alya turned to her best friend. “Girl, are you okay?”

Her tone rubbed Marinette wrong, and she frowned. “That depends. Are you going to tell me you believe that crap she was saying about Chat Noir?”

“Of course not.”

“What about you two?” Marinette asked, turning on the two boys who sat near them.

Nino held up his hands. “Listen, dude. I’ve got mad respect for the guy. I know he’d never do that.”

Marinette’s teeth clenched as she waited for the final response. Adrien’s attempt to stop her earlier still infuriated her.

“I don’t believe it either,” Adrien said, his voice barely more than a whisper. “I just never would have thought you’d feel so strongly about it.”

And just like that, Marinette’s fury was back. She stood up.

“I don’t know what’s more disappointing—that you apparently thought so low of me or that you were willing to let her keep spreading those lies. You once told me that it was okay if everyone else believe Lila’s lies, so long as at least we knew the truth. But you know what? I’m not willing to let her say such terrible things about someone who deserves so much better. And neither should you. Chat Noir would get that.”

Marinette left, Alya at her heels. Neither girl saw the nearly shattered look on Adrien's face.

Chapter Text

Adrien lay on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Nathalie had taken one look at his pale face after school and ordered him to go to his room and rest. He had a photo shoot the following day, and neither Nathalie nor his father wanted to risk him being sick for it. Adrien was glad they’d cancelled his afternoon plans because he wasn’t sure he would have been able to do any of it. He could barely function.

“Hey, kid. You alive over there?”

Plagg hovered near Adrien’s head, a slice of camembert in his hands and a worried expression on his face. Adrien had been silent since Marinette had left the classroom, not even understanding the bomb she’d just dropped on him.

“Adrien?”

Adrien remained silent. It was all too much. He couldn’t process it all.

Lila’s lies about Chat Noir had bothered him. Of course they had. He’d been sitting in his seat, feeling physically ill over the lies she was spouting, but he hadn’t been surprised—not really. While Lila had never attacked Adrien with her lies, he’d always known Chat Noir was fair game.

He knew what Paris thought of Chat Noir—what his classmates thought. It was all about Ladybug. The entire city adored her, and he didn’t blame them for it. She was perfect and absolutely deserving of all their praise and love. That was why he never faulted a single citizen for seeing him as nothing more than a sidekick. After all, it was Ladybug who captured the akumas, purified them, and fixed all the damage that Hawkmoth’s victim caused. She was the real hero.

But as much as he accepted it, Ladybug never had. She got so mad any time she heard someone call him her sidekick. They were partners, she would always say. And while Chat knew that, and had been reminded of it hundreds of times by His Lady, he’d never fully believed it. How could he when she’d always been so much more amazing than him? When Ladybug was the only one who saw him as her equal partner?

But Ladybug wasn’t the only one after all. Marinette believed in him too.

He didn’t think he would ever forget the moment when she’d glared at him, eyes full of righteous fury, and said “Chat Noir will always be worth it.”

Hearing he was worth it—worth anything—wasn’t something he was all too familiar with. Honestly, other than by Ladybug, he had never been told that. At least, not since his mother had left him.

Then again, had Ladybug ever actually said that? Had she ever flat out said, “Chat, you are worth it”? He didn’t remember.

But Marinette—Marinette—had said that. She hadn’t realized she was saying it to Chat Noir himself, but she’d still said it. Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the most amazing person he knew—excluding only Ladybug herself—thought he was worth it.

Plagg flew closer and tapped Adrien’s cheek. “Seriously, kid, you gotta say something.”

He needed to see Marinette. So he said the three words his kwami probably wasn’t expecting.

“Plagg, claws out!”

---

Across town, Marinette was coming to her own conclusions.

She’d been pacing her room since she’d got home. Her anger was far from spent out.

“I can’t believe her! Like Chat would ever treat anyone like that. Sure, he can get a little annoying at times with his never-ending flirting, but he would never force himself on someone. He would even stop with the flirting if he thought it truly made me uncomfortable.”

Tikki, hovering nearby, nodded in agreement. Marinette had been saying the same things for the last thirty minutes, and Tikki was just waiting for her to take a breath so she could put in her own two cents.

“And the rest of the class!” Marinette continued. “I swear, if I have to hear one more person call Chat my sidekick, I’m going to lose it.”

The kwami decided she was done waiting for the girl to run out of steam. In fact, she was starting to worry that the anger would never die down, and that was far too risky with Hawkmoth around.

“Marinette!”

Surprised, Marinette stopped her pacing and looked over.

“You need to calm down,” Tikki said. “I know you’re upset, but continuing to talk about it isn’t helping. We can’t risk you getting akumatized.”

While Marinette wanted to argue with her and insist she couldn’t just calm down, she recognized the truth in Tikki’s words. They were incredibly lucky Hawkmoth hadn’t already sensed her emotions and tried to take advantage.

Marinette took several deep breaths. Once she finally felt herself beginning to calm, she gave Tikki a reassuring smile. “I’m okay.”

“Good. Now I think there are two things we need to talk about.”

“What do you mean?”

“First, what are you going to do about Lila?”

Just the name had Marinette’s anger rising once more. She forced herself to take a few more deep breaths before answering.

“I honestly don’t think Lila will spread any more lies about Chat. There was something in her expression that makes me feel confident saying that.”

“That’s good,” Tikki said, “but what about the lies she’s already spread? Not just about Chat.”

“You’re right. Even if she doesn’t spread any more about Chat, she already said the ones today. If people still believe her other lies, maybe they believe those ones too. It’s not like they’ve ever believed me before when I said she was lying.”

The kwami nodded in agreement.

“Tikki, I think it’s time we really do something about Lila. Alya never believes Marinette, but maybe Ladybug can convince her.”

“It’s worth a try!”

“What was the other thing you wanted to talk about?”

Tikki smiled. “Marinette, how do you feel about Chat Noir?”

The question confused Marinette. “He’s my partner and I trust him. That’s why I couldn’t let Lila spread those lies. You know that.”

“But how do you feel about him?”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

With a long-suffering sigh, Tikki continued. “Let me ask another question then. How do you feel about Adrien?”

“Wh-what? What does that have to do with something?”

Tikki flew over to where all of Adrien’s pictures used to hang. Marinette had taken them down weeks ago when she’d realized just how ridiculous her crush had been. Taking down the photos and curbing her literal obsession hadn’t eliminated all the feelings though. They both knew that.

“You know how I feel about Adrien. I like him. A lot.”

“What about today, when he tried to stop you from confronting Lila?”

Marinette felt the stirring of anger again. “I was so mad. I couldn’t believe him. But then again…. I could.”

Suddenly, Marinette realized something very important. Something she hadn’t been able to put into words before.

“He really disappointed me, Tikki. He’s been disappointing me. He isn’t the perfect person I thought he was.”

Tikki already knew this, and she was thrilled Marinette was finally realizing it too.

“Does that mean you don’t like him anymore?”

Marinette shook her head. “Of course not. I just… it’s just different. I still like him, but I’m realizing there’s a lot about him that I don’t know.”

Tikki repeated her earlier question. “And how do you feel about Chat?”

This time, Marinette understood where her kwami was going with the question. Her hand flew up to her mouth as she made a second realization.

“I really like him, Tikki. Like a lot. I think… I think I might have a crush on him.”

Tikki squealed. “Of course you do! It took you long enough to realize it.”

Marinette sat down on the floor, not even bothering to walk over to a chair. She sat there for several moments, looking nearly as shocked as her classmates had looked during her impassioned speech.

“Tikki, I don’t know what to think about this. When did this happen? I’m so confused. Adrien is still the one I like.”

“Can’t you like both?”

Groaning, Marinette dropped her face into her hands.

“When did that stupid cat work his way into my heart?”

“Does it matter?”

“No. But why are you bringing this up now? We have other problems to deal with.”

“Hearing you defend Chat today—even to Adrien—made me realize it’s time you accept your feelings. Besides, I have a feeling your speech changed things.”

Marinette looked up at that. “Changed things how?”

Tikki just smiled. “I think we’re about to find out.”

She zipped out of sight, much to Marinette’s confusion. But in the next second, she heard the knock on her window. Marinette’s eyes widened as she looked over and saw who had been knocking.

Chat Noir had come for a visit.

Chapter Text

Marinette sat frozen on the floor, staring at the black cat outside her window. The moment lasted longer than it should have before she scrambled to her feet and gestured towards the skylight, telling him he was free to come in.

As she waited for him to join her, she tried to make sense of her thoughts. She wasn’t ready to see him yet! She needed more time to come to grips with her realization. Though if she was being honest with herself, it shouldn’t have come as such a surprise. She’s started to feel the shift in her feelings towards Chat weeks ago. It probably wasn’t a coincidence that it started right around the time she took down her Adrien Appreciation wall and started to realize that Adrien wasn’t quite as perfect as she thought. It had just taken today—and hearing Lila threaten her kitty—for all of it to settle in her mind.

Chat dropped through the skylight and then down to the bedroom floor in front of Marinette.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, trying to sound casual.

Instead of answering, Chat Noir closed the distance between them and wrapped her up in a hug.

“Thank you.” He breathed the words into her hair.

Marinette was confused, but she wasn’t complaining. She wrapped her arms around him and returned the hug. When he pulled back and took a step back, she looked up at him.

“What are you thanking me for exactly?”

He laughed softly and ran his hand through his hair. “Sorry, I should have explained first. I just couldn’t stop myself.”

Seeing that he was still reeling from whatever it was that had brought him here, she took his hand and pulled him over to sit on the chaise next to her.

“What is it, Chat?”

“I… heard about what happened in your class today.”

Marinette stiffened, and he rushed to reassure her.

“One of your classmates told me. I don’t remember their name.”

She relaxed—only slightly.

“They told me what you said. How you defended me.”

At that, Marinette smiled. “Of course I did, you crazy cat. I couldn’t stand by and let someone spread such awful lies about you.”

“Thank you for not believing them. I didn’t know… I couldn’t be sure that you trusted me that much.”

The way he said the words broke her heart, and she reached over to take his hands in hers. “Of course I trust you. I didn’t believe the lies. Not for one single second.”

A shuddering breath escaped him and he pulled Marinette in again, squeezing her tightly.

“You are amazing, Marinette.”

She was glad that he couldn’t see her flaming cheeks. And when he released her again, she hoped that the color had faded enough for him not to notice.

“I’m surprised you heard about it,” Marinette said. “Why were you walking around as Chat Noir in the middle of the day?”

“I wasn’t. I only transformed so I could come see you.”

They both froze, realizing his mistake at the same moment.

“If you weren’t Chat Noir, why did they bother telling you about it? And who exactly did you say told you again?”

“Uh, one of your classmates. They just, uh, randomly decided to tell people they met on the street, I guess.”

“What did they look like?” Marinette asked, suspicion in her tone.

Adrien fumbled with an answer that he could give her. If he described any of their classmates, Marinette would easily know who he meant and could call them up to confirm.

“Some guy,” he said. He’d just have to be vague.

But that wasn’t going to cut it.

Marinette stood up quickly and backed away from him. “You’re one of my classmates, aren’t you?”

“No, no. I’m definitely not.”

They were both panicking now, but for very different reasons.

“You absolutely are! I can’t believe this. I can’t handle this right now. I’m not supposed to know who you are.”

“Marinette, I told you, I’m not—”

She continued her rambling, lost in her own thoughts. “This can’t be happening. I can’t handle all these revelations today.”

Despite everything else going on, Chat’s curiosity was piqued at that comment. “What other revelations?”

Marinette’s eyes widened at the question. “N-nothing. Nothing at all.”

“Marinette…”

“I think we have more important things to discuss! Like how I apparently know you outside the mask!”

Adrien winced. “So you’re really not going to believe one of our—I mean your classmates told me?”

Her glare was fierce enough to have him wincing again.

“If I had, your little slip up there would have just sealed the deal for you. Chat, I’m not supposed to know who you are!”

He stood up and walked over to where she stood, taking her hands. “But is it really so bad? I trust you, Marinette. And you obviously trust me, right?”

“It’s not about me trusting you, Chat.”

“No, but it is about me trusting you. Marinette, there’s no one I’d trust more with my identity than you.”

That statement shocked both of them. Adrien hadn’t even realized he felt that strongly about it until the words were out of his mouth.

“Not even Ladybug?”

“Okay, other than Ladybug. I’d tell her my identity in a heartbeat, but she won’t let me. If I can’t tell her, who better to trust than the everyday Ladybug?”

This time it took Adrien longer to realize what he’d said and the implications. But the effect on Marinette was instant. Only one person had ever called her that. She took a step back, pulling her hands from his as her right hand come up to cover her mouth. Her movements were slow, as though she were in a daze, as she gazed at him in shock.

His words finally registered, and he gave her an apologetic smile. “Oops?”

“You’re Adrien?”

Knowing it was useless to disagree at this point, he simply nodded.

“A-Adrien?! You can’t be Adrien.”

“Why not?” he asked, feeling offended but not sure which half of him had been insulted.

Marinette threw her hands up in the air and began pacing. “This can’t be happening! If he’s Chat Noir then that means that he… that I… that he’s… no, no, it’s impossible. This must all be a dream. Or is it a nightmare? I can’t even—”

Suddenly she froze. Adrien didn’t know if he should say anything, to make sure he hadn’t somehow broken her. But when she turned to face him again, and he saw the look of fierce determination on her face, he lost all ability to form words.

“If you’re Adrien, then why did you say that today?”

Once again he was left confused until she decided to enlighten him.

Closing the distance between them again, she began to poke him in the chest with her finger, emphasizing every word. “How. Could. You. Say. It. Wasn’t. Worth. It.”

“Er, because it wasn’t? I didn’t want you to get in trouble over something Lila said.”

Back was the fierceness that Adrien had seen in Marinette’s eyes earlier—the one that had both terrified and enthralled him.

“How could you think that about yourself? Of course you’re worth it! I’d get in trouble a million times over for you because like I said earlier, you are always worth it. How many times have I told you this? How many times am I going to have to keep telling you this in order for you to get it? You are an amazing person and an amazing hero and you deserve all the happiness in the world. Even if Paris doesn’t seem to get that. You’re not just some sidekick!”

This time, it was Adrien who was in shock as Marinette went on and on, too lost in her righteous indignation to realize what she was saying. Because the thing was, Marinette had never told Chat any of those things. Sure, Marinette and Chat were friendly, but they’d never had that kind of conversation. But someone else had said these very words to him—multiple times. And as he heard them now, he couldn’t help but notice how familiar they sounded. Not just the words but the voice saying them….

“Milady?”

The shocked whisper effectively cut off Marinette’s tirade. Her face drained of color as she tried to take a step back away from him. But even in his overwhelmed state, he managed to reach out and place a hand on her waist, holding her in place.

“I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said. But the pure panic in her eyes told another story.

“Marinette. Ladybug. It’s really you.”

He spoke with such utter reverence that Marinette couldn’t move—couldn’t do anything but stare up into those gorgeous green eyes of his.

“I can’t believe I finally found you.”

Deciding it was too late for denials—and realizing that she didn’t really want to deny it—she finally smiled up at him.

“Hi, kitty.”

They once again found themselves in an embrace, each hugging the other tightly, like they never wanted to let go. When a soft sob escaped Adrien, Marinette’s hand began to move across his back in soft strokes.

“It’s okay, kitty,” she soothed. “I’m here. I’ve got you.”

They held each other for a long time before they finally released each other. Adrien’s hands settled on her waist as they looked at each other—truly seeing each other fully for the first time. Marinette’s hand came up to brush a lone tear from his cheek before cradling his face.

“I’m so glad it’s you,” Adrien said.

“Really?”

Marinette couldn’t hide her disbelief, and it broke something in Adrien. His grip tightened the slightest bit as he took in just how insecure and vulnerable his partner was feeling.

“Of course, Marinette.”

“You aren’t… disappointed that it’s just plain old me?”

He marveled that she would ever ask such a question—that she couldn’t see how incredible she was.

“How could I be disappointed when it’s you? I can’t believe it took me so long to figure it out because who else could be Ladybug? Who else is as strong and brave and selfless and incredible and beautiful as you.”

Her cheeks warmed again, and he couldn’t help himself—he placed a soft kiss on the top of her head.

“What about you?” he asked. “Are you disappointed?”

She laughed softly and looked down, unable to hold his gaze. “Remember the guy I told you about?”

“Yeah…” He wasn’t sure why he was bringing him up now of all times!

Looking up at him again, she smiled, and he realized what she was implying.

“Really? It was me?”

She nodded. “I can’t believe I fell for you twice.”

“I can absolutely believe I fell for you twice.”

They didn’t know which of them moved first. All they knew was that when their lips met, everything else disappeared. It wasn’t their first kiss, but it was the first one that mattered.

A little while later, they sat on the chaise, cuddled up together while their two kwamis chatted happily on the other side of the room. Marinette and Adrien had a lot of things they still needed to talk about, and several things they needed to work through, but for now they were just content to be together.

Unfortunately for both of them, there were some things that couldn’t wait.

“Hey Adrien?”

“Yeah?”

“I was going to do this alone, but I think I’d rather do it together. How do you feel about a visit to a certain blogger? I think it’s past time we do something about Lila’s lies.”

“I feel great about it, Milady.”

Ten minutes later, two superheroes appeared outside Alya’s window. Her eyes widened as she took them in, and she rushed over to let them in.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

Ladybug looked at Chat, finding reassurance in his smile, before turning back to Alya.

“I think it’s time we had a talk.”