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Ladybug points her yo-yo at Chat Noir. "You're…a spy."
He levels his staff at her. "I don't want us to fight."
"I'm training to be a Guardian, you're training to be a Sancoeur. We're on opposite sides. I'm supposed to reclaim what was stolen."
"Funny. Nathalie said that to me, too."
"You're the ones who stole from us," she says. They continue pointing their weapons, but neither want to fight when they've been in love.
Or perpetual hate.
If you were to ask Alya Césaire if Ladybug and Chat Noir were in love, she would say yes.
If you were to ask her if they were dating, she would sigh and say that she wishes they would say if they were.
And if you were to ask her if Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste got along, she would laugh in your face - and tell you that they never have.
"Adrien Agreste started at my school," Marinette tells her mentor.
"Nathalie Sancoeur is in Gabriel's employment, and she has no children. I would suggest keeping a close eye on Adrien, to be certain."
Marinette nods, resolute in her mission.
If you were to ask Ladybug what she thought of Chat Noir, she would say that she loves him, and that he is irreplaceable.
If you were to ask Marinette Dupain-Cheng her opinion on Adrien Agreste, she would call him a good-for-nothing spy.
"Marinette seems to not be fond of me." Adrien keeps the ring he received earlier a secret. He suspects it will be for the best.
"Then you make her." Nathalie has always been more ruthless than him. "You find a way. You're the kindest person I've ever met. Use that to your advantage."
He swallows - but he will obey.
If you were to ask Chat Noir what he thought of Ladybug, he would say that she's the girl of his dreams.
If you were to ask Adrien Agreste what he thought of Marinette Dupain-Cheng, he would give a half-hearted chuckle and say that he isn't quite sure what to think of her.
But, in that case, he'd be lying.
"How long have you been waiting to betray me? How long have you been planning to use my gullibility to your advantage?" she snarls.
Neither of their weapons are meant for close combat, in truth, yet they gravitate towards each other nonetheless.
"I don't know how I can get you to believe me that I have never hated you."
"I can't say the same," she answers. "I thought you were the one part of my life safe. I thought he chose wisely. I can't believe you were him all along."
"I was spying on you," Adrien confesses. "I spied on you at school, when you're Marinette and I'm Adrien. I was punished if I didn't learn anything. I started lying to her towards the end."
No one is watching, but people will be soon.
"So I was right to suspect you." She starts to extend the string, even though it won't help her at such close range. Chat still has the range to attack, though.
He kisses her.
Attacking it is. She winds her yo-yo around his waist, tying him in a way where she can keep him wherever she wants.
"I was spying on you too," she whispers, "as Marinette."
If you were to ask what Wang Fu thought of Nathalie Sancoeur, he would say that he detested her ancestors for taking the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous - but that she as an individual could make up for the sins of her forefathers if she wished.
If you were to ask what Nathalie Sancoeur what she thought of the Order of the Guardians, she would say that they needed to be replaced by a new, less conservative Order. She would be wrong - the Order was mostly dead, and Marinette was planning on changing things once she was made Guardian.
"What a pair the two of us are," Chat comments dryly.
She takes a deep breath. She doesn't punch him, like she should. He's still holding his staff. The yo-yo is twined around his waist still.
He backs away. She pulls the yo-yo taut, and Chat sputters.
"What are you doing?"
"What I think is right," she answers, and pulls him in again. "It would do some good for you not to resist. I need to teach you why you're wrong. Why the Sancoeur philosophy is wrong. Why I plan on changing things. And why I need your Miraculous - and the other two."
And, if you were to ask why this all started - well, it started with a starving boy that lived too long.
It started with a sentimonster with a hunger for Miraculous.
It started how it did in another universe.
But in this one, Shi Meixin survives. He finds the Butterfly, and the Peacock, and the Grimoire buried in the snow.
He doesn't use them - no one does until Nathalie informs Gabriel of exactly what happens. Who she is.
Shi Meixin takes the alias Félix Sancoeur, and the future shifts further.
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," he breathes. "You can have the other two."
"What do you want in exchange?"
Because nothing ever comes free.
And if you were to ask why Marinette and Adrien - well, Sabine was once a candidate, but refused. Marinette consented where her mother refused. She thought, perhaps, the Order was wrong - but Marinette could fix it from the inside.
Nathalie had never wanted a child. Taking care of Emilie's and training him was enough for her.
Heirs to rival inheritances.
"To understand why. And…to be honest, you."
"I'm not someone you can barter for," she answers, "but I will give you what knowledge I have."
"I know. You're priceless, milady."
"It'll take time to get back to what we had before." She releases him from the yo-yo and rests her forehead against his.
She trusts him not to run from her. He does take a step back, when freed, but they're still a breath away from each other.
"Together?" He links their hands.
"Together."