Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Girl, would you let it go?” Alya said. “I know this is a limited edition copy, but is Craigslist really the only place you can find this thing?”

Mari turned her big blue eyes on her best friend. “This one’s the best life scale poster on the market,” she said. “There’s no way I can let a chance like this go.”

“Okay, but you’re not going alone. I’m not leaving you alone with...who is this? ‘ Toothfairy45’ ? Jesus Christ they’re going to kidnap you and steal all your teeth—“

“Relax, Alya. I can take care of myself. Besides,” A glint appeared in her eyes, “there’s no way I’m going to let them hog a poster like that, in mint condition no less. It would be a crime for it not to be displayed!”

Alya laughed. “Sometimes I really wonder. You take the levels of fangirling so far...is it really just because he saved you that one time?”

“That was it...at first. But he’s only become even stronger and more heroic over time.” Marinette sighed and looked past Alya dreamily. “He’s really just--”

“Oookay, no, we’re not going on another one of these tirades again. Besides, I thought you liked Ladybug too.”

“Ladybug is great! I-Of course I love Ladybug! You know, Lady blog and everything.” She stuttered quickly, trying not to give herself away. “But Chat Noir is…”

Okay, yes. She was a Chat Noir fangirl. Probably the biggest one in all of Paris, in fact. (She’d been challenged before, but no one could seem to top her when it came to her seemingly endless knowledge of Chat Noir’s preferences and pick up lines.) He debuted as a superhero about two weeks before she’d gotten her own Miraculous, before the akumas had even shown up in Paris and she’d gotten her earrings, saving her life and stealing her heart. 

It had been a rainy night, and she had been taking a delivery order for her parents. Maybe it was too late for her to be out; but Tom and Sabine were so stressed lately. It was the least she could do to take a load off of them. She certainly hadn’t expected to stare down the barrel of a gun, and the shaking hand behind it. 

“Drop your bags,” they’d said. Mari’s vision had started to tilt, and her throat tightened up. Of all the times she had to panic, did it really have to be now?

The person behind the gun—it looked like a man, sounded like a man, but she couldn’t be sure, everything was moving so fast. She could see his fingers tighten around the grip of the handle, and move towards the trigger. “I-I said, bags!” 

She fell to her knees, and let the bags fall loose on the ground. “Sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so—“

“I don’t give a shit if you’re sorry, kid. I asked for your money. Hand it over before I--” he fumbled and clicked the safety off. “I’ll start shooting!” The guy kicked her bags aside, keeping the gun pointed at her. 

She didn’t have anything on her. “I don’t have—“

A shadow dropped in between them at that moment, startling Marinette and the robber. She froze in place, at the sight of a new figure in the alleyway. She thought her heart would stop just with the fright he’d given her. 

He was tall, broad shouldered, with golden locks and a bright, green eyed smile. He politely held a hand out to Marinette, bending down to pull her up and away from the assailant. “Why hello there, miss, it seems you dropped your bags. Do you need any help carrying them? They look awfully heavy.”

She blushed. He was so charming for such a devilishly handsome looking guy. And even though his face was covered by a black mask, his teeth were a brilliant white and the rest of him was gorgeous. 

“Thanks,” she managed quietly, “but...are you going to be okay?”

“Don’t worry,” he reassured her. “I’ll take care of this one. He doesn’t seem to know what he’s doing. I won’t hurt him, I think he’s just in a tight spot and needs a bit of help.”

He grabbed the gun with his free hand, still holding one of Mari’s tightly in his own, and called out, “Cataclysm!”

In his grip, the gun disintegrated. The robber dropped it in shock before the remaining dust could even touch his fingers. 

“I don’t like guns,” the blond boy said apologetically, with a smirk and a teasing shrug of his shoulders. 

“Who are you?” The man asked in fear. 

“No need to be so scared,” he said teasingly. Still, he seemed genuine. He’d made no move to hurt the man. “I’m a hero, after all. You can call me Chat Noir.”

“Chat,” Marinette muttered, noticing his cat ears and the little belt tail he wore. “Cute,” she said under her breath. 

“Well I’m glad you think so, purr incess,” he said, and winked. A critical hit. Mari could feel her heart pulse loudly in response. “Now, let me take you home. I’ll clean up this mess for you, don’t worry.”

“Are you serious?” The robber said. “You think I’m going to just let you—“

He grabbed a wire from behind his back and wrapped up the man in a matter of seconds. “Cat trap,” he said with a grin. 

“You’re good at this,” Marinette commented, feeling particularly useless standing there with her bags strewn beside her. 

“Well, you’ve been a wonderful audience.” He said. “I don’t get half this much praise from anyone else I’ve saved.” He launched her up in a princess carry, and pulled out a silver baton from his side. “Hold on tight, princess. We’re going really high, really fast.”

She gripped his neck and yelped as they launched up towards the rooftops of Paris. 

“Oh, yeah, could you maybe direct me back to your house? I don’t exactly have my bearings here.”

She tried to speak through her panting breaths and pounding heart rate. “Dupain-Chang bakery...I live...upstairs…”

“Oh I love that place!” He said excitedly. “Might I get a pastry in compensation?” She tried to nod her head (although it was spinning a bit) but he laughed. “Don’t worry, I don’t do this job for the rewards. Just saving princesses like you is enough for me.”

She flushed a bright red, and tried not to miss the feeling of his arms against her back when he dropped her off on the bakery’s rooftop. 

“I must bid you adieu, miss. I have a scoundrel to take care of.” He bowed, and she nodded and raised a hand to wave him off. 

As soon as he’d disappeared again, she fell to her knees again, this time overwhelmed in a completely different way. Her whole body felt numb, her nerves tingling and cheeks still warm even against the cold night’s breeze. She hesitantly touched her shoulders which still held some warmth from his arms, and at that very moment, she knew she was a goner. 

= = =

Several months later and it only got worse every day.  You’d think getting to know him so intimately would have tampered down her crush; instead, she thought over every interaction ten times more, found new ways to daydream about him, and idolized his hero status. All while remaining cool and calm in front of the guy she adored. 

“My Lady,” Chat called smugly from the rooftop. “I missed you so dearly since our last pawtrol...how could you be so late and make your dear kitty wait?”

She rolled her eyes, but her heart pounded at his cute little referral as ‘her kitty’. His puns were stupidly cute sometimes. “Well, a bug has to be here and there,” she said casually. “Besides, don’t you have better things to do than go around rooftops late at night, and flirt with girls?”

“Nothing more important than you, My Lady,” he said, and she sighed in exasperation. 

She didn’t have to fake it that time. Marinette knew that Chat Noir was a flirtatious creature by nature. He’d called her princess as Marinette, then made up a brand new endearment to use on his partner the moment he saw her. And since that was the case, he’d probably made a move on half the girls (and maybe the men as well) he’d saved. It stung, a little, to think about her partner going around and using those little one liners on every girl he met. 

Marinette was a possessive person, but she wasn’t exactly straightforward enough that she could ever even convey those feelings. She turned away from Chat to hide the disappointment in her expression. These feelings of jealousy were her own fault. It wasn’t Chat’s responsibility to pick up on everything and to hold back on her account.

And, god forbid, he’d be terrified if he knew the extent of her infatuation with him. It was better to keep a safe, albeit cold, working distance. At least, until she could wait to get back to her room and clutch the Chat Noir body pillow that was waiting for her on the chais. 

Chat liked cool, calm, collected Ladybug. He didn’t like Marinette the fangirl. It was better if she just tampered down the whole “maiden in love” thing.

“Let’s get moving then, Kitty,” she said, and swung off towards the Eiffel Tower. 

= = =

“Nino, don’t wake them up!” Alya hissed. “They look almost cute like this.” Nino laughed, and Alya continued taking photos of her two friends slumped against one another at their seats. 

“Mari is gonna kill you when she gets up.” Nino said, but still looked amused nonetheless. 

“Oh, relax, would you?” Alya said. “It’s not like they hate each other. They just...don’t see eye to eye on some things.”

Nino deadpanned. “Mari literally threatened to burn Adrien’s backpack if he bad mouthed Chat Noir again.”

“That was ages ago!!”

“Last week…?”

“And it’s in the past now, right? Besides, they’ve both got the fan thing going on. Just because Mari doesn’t exactly spare her testimonials on Ladybug…”

Nino sighed. “Honestly, you would think they’d get along better. But it turns out being super fans of Chat Noir and Ladybug have just made them hypercritical of the other.”

Alya grinned. “And maybe, if they were a little closer, they could resolve their differences and find a middle ground?”

“I thought journalists weren’t supposed to be naive.”

“I’m optimistic.”

“Blindly.” Nino smiled. “Seriously, though, let’s pull these two apart before they—“

“Before they wake up?” Adrien said, eyes tired but burning with rage. “You didn’t think that would be convenient before I was cozied up to my mortal enemy?”

“Pfft,” Mari said, swallowing down a yawn. “Don’t flatter yourself. You think we’re mortal enemies? You’re just a crumb on the bottom of my shoe.”

“Just because you don’t have good taste in superheroes doesn’t mean—“

“G uys.” Alya pleaded. “Can you go back to sleep? It was a brief moment of quiet but I’d like it back please.”

“For you, Alya,” Mari said. “But only because you helped me get that poster this weekend. Hey, Adrien, do you remember that life sized Ladybug poster with her custom perfume…? Oh wait, that was a Chat Noir exclusive. My bad!”

He growled. “Don’t even act like Chat has better merch than Ladybug. If you look at clothing lines alone…”

“It wasn’t even two seconds that time,” Alya muttered, letting them go off at one another. 

Adrien and Marinette were a weird pair, for sure. They were both obsessed with (read: in love with) Paris’s superheroes. But somehow, upon meeting each other, it had turned into a fight of “who’s the better hero”. Marinette had been refuting someone's point against Chat, talking about how Ladybug was “obviously overrated” and the shy new kid Adrien just lost it, going off on her completely. The two had almost gotten physical until Mme. Bustier walked in and announced the start of class. 

It was the end of their first fight, but the beginning of a harsh rivalry that hadn’t burned any dimmer over the past few months. 

Nino and Alya were a strange contribution to their dynamic. Once they started dating, their respective best friends had to “publicly tolerate” one another, and group outings became regular. They still claimed to despise one another, but Alya knew better. 

After all, Marinette seemed to have a thing for blondes. 

Nino seemed to think the same. They’d been subtly trying to pair them up together, but it was hard to convince them to actually talk and get to know one another when they constantly had digs against Ladybug and Chat Noir to bring up. 

“Besides,” Nino had confessed to her, secretly. “Whenever Mari talks about Chats appeal, Adrien totally gets all flustered and stuff. I mean, it’s obvious she has a thing for tall blond guys and green eyes.”

“Him too?” She groaned. “Marinette looked like she was gonna explode the other day when Adrien talked about how cute pigtails were.”

“It’s like they don’t understand they’re totally each other’s types.” Nino complained. 

And so they’d worked to push them together, only for their bitter rivalry to evolve into a begrudging enemyship. It was too hard to actually make it happen, but it was fun to tease the two of them, at least. 

It was still to be seen if it would get them anywhere, though.

= = =

Chloe Bourgeois was one of the few people Marinette really couldn’t stand. She was famous for keeping her temper cool, but this situation would not slide for her.

She was a Chat Noir fan. Obviously she was used to the discourse, how people constantly compared her and Chat to one another (often making some insulting claims), but hearing it out loud was so much worse. At least Adrien tried to keep his tone civil. But Chloe was…

“I’d obviously be a much better partner for her, even without a catsuit.” She huffed pretentiously.

“Oh, really?” Marinette drawled. “So humble of you to offer your services to Paris.” It was taking everything in her not to scream at her (or show her the latest fight’s screencaps of Chat, which were so beautiful it was a sin not to share them).

“Anyways, he’s always running around and getting in her way. If it were me, I wouldn’t be such a dead weight on Paris’s savior.”

Adrien stiffened a bit in front of her, she noticed. It was strange...he’d made similar claims, but whenever he heard someone insulting Chat Noir he seemed to tense up a bit. She smiled. Maybe he was a secret fan, after all.

“Chloe, if you continue, I can’t guarantee your safety.” Alya warned her. 

“Not necessary,” Mari said. “Useless people can’t recognize actual talent when they see it. I mean, Chat Noir basically carries Ladybug around. She’s forgetful, and doesn’t notice her surroundings, and she has no idea how to even talk to an akuma--”

“That’s not true!” Adrien turned around, his eyes wide.

“--And,” she continued, unfazed. “Ladybug would be dead without Chat Noir. Every single villain they’ve faced, he’s stepped in right at the critical moment. If you really liked Ladybug, I feel like you might have a bit more respect for the guy that saves her butt every week.”

Chloe looked pissed at that. “It’s just dumb luck.”

“Luck?” She laughed. “If anything, Ladybug’s the lucky one. She’s got such a wonderful cat looking out for her.” Mari went warm at the thought, limbs going gooey at the memory of Chat saving her. Every time it happened, she wanted to collapse into a puddle and simultaneously launch herself into his arms.

Adrien looked like he was going a little warm too. “Chat Noir is plenty lucky,” he said. “But...you made some good points.”

“Huh?” Chloe screeched. “Adrikins, you’re taking her side ? What is this?”

Alya coughed a laugh into her fist. “Seriously, you three take this stuff way too seriously.”

Nino turned to roll his eyes at her. “You literally run the Ladyblog. You of all people have no room to talk.” 

Adrien whined. “Yeah, Alya, you run the Lady blog. How come you don’t take her side more in all this?”

She laughed. “If I do, I’ve broken my end of the deal and Mari can post her ‘Chatblog’ content on my main site.” She scratched her head. “Although, thinking about it, she could probably pull a lot of views from that...but is it too much rebranding?”

“Alya,” Mari’s eyes sparkled. “Would you really…?”

“Don’t encourage it,” Adrien chided her. Alya nodded.

“If she got a platform, she’d be unstoppable.”

“On second thought,” Mari said seriously. “I can’t always share all of the pictures of Chat Noir I’ve gotten. Some art is meant to be appreciated privately.”

Adrien looked red. “You’re seriously that obsessed with him?”

“She’s a maiden in love,” Alya said, laughing at his expression. And she didn’t deny it. “I’m not sure there’s anyone in Paris who knows Chat Noir better than Mari, not even Ladybug herself at this point.”

Marinette cackled at that. “Who knows, maybe she’s secretly a fan of his too?”

Adrien had to put his head down on his desk for a few minutes after that one to cool off.

= = =

Mari opened her laptop to fifteen missed notifications on her Chat fan blog on Tumblr. It had gotten pretty big as of late. Chat had recently stuck his back out to save a bunch of kids on a field trip at the Louvre, and it had increased his appeal tenfold. And she could never miss out on an opportunity to let other people appreciate such a specimen of a man.

Her asks were always active, but recently, she’d been messaging back and forth with a Ladybug fanblog that insisted on debating which of the pair was better. She hid a smile behind her hand, remembering how Adrien had conceded today for the first time.

Sure, she claimed to be Adrien’s “mortal enemy”, but he wasn’t half bad. It was rough in the beginning though, what with his insistence that “Ladybug was obviously superior” and on top of that, being so close with Chloe, Mari had written him off as an asshole.

She took a look at her inbox, and smiled even wider.

>>> I’m going to have to ask you to reconsider your bio

>>> I think I know someone who is Chat Noir’s ACTUAL #1 fan today

>>> For legal reasons, you can’t make the claim for that position anymore

It was funny to think that someone else was even close to her level of fangirling. But whoever they were, they didn’t get to hang out with him twice a week on patrols, or skip class to fight akumas together (not that they had much of a choice, but still. That was her role exclusively.)

>>> Doubtful. Almost as likely as Ladybug surpassing Chat Noir in the Hero Awards this year

>>> Even though they are rigged by the way

>>> Just putting that out there

She closed her laptop, deciding to start her homework later, and pulled Tikki out of her bag. “Ah, you probably want a snack around now, right?”

“Sure, Marinette.” She grinned. “You and Adrien have been getting along pretty well, huh?”

“What?” She asked. “No way, I’m just getting closer to converting him to a Chat Noir fan. Alya and Nino are pushing way too hard for us to even be friends.”

“Are you sure you’re not just making excuses?” Tikki said. “You seem to get more passionate around him than anyone. It’s okay to have a little rivalry here and there, but you might be better friends than you’d think.”

She laughed. “Maybe. But there’s no way I’m going to suck up to him, at least not until he’s admitted defeat and sung Chat Noir’s praises.”

Tikki glared. “You really are nothing but a fangirl after all, huh. Maybe tell Chat next time what you’re thinking?”

Mari turned red and dove into her pillow. “No way. He’d never look at me the same way.”

Tikki muttered something about how that “might be a good thing” but Marinette couldn’t even pay it any mind. Telling Chat Noir...no way.

Chapter Text

Adrien bit his lip as he stared at the screen before him, as Ladybug crossed the sky gracefully in 4K quality. “God bless you Alya,” he whispered softly, and clicked “like” without a second thought.

People didn’t often peg him for a fanboy, but Adrien was a master at his craft. He’d been isolated and homeschooled for years, with nothing but the internet to satisfy his curiosity of friendship and somehow managed to get on the fandom side of the internet immediately. And so, when he’d met a real life idol a few months back, his fanboy side had kicked in instantly. And also kicked himself in the foot.

Ladybug was probably the most magnificent person Adrien had ever met. So when he’d first struck up a conversation, he’d let loose one of the worst pickup lines of all time. And he was met with confusion and disappointment in the bluest eyes he’d ever seen.

“Plagg,” he sobbed. “She’s so beautiful.”

“Ugh,” the kwami groaned. “One piece of Camembert and you get fifteen minutes to vent. But that’s it. And I charge higher rates for over an hour, you know.”

The blond nodded weepily and gave his kwami the cheese.

How had it ended up like this, you ask? A teenage boy confessing his love problems to a thousand year old cat fairy? He didn’t really have many other outlets. Besides his fanblog online, there wasn’t anyone he could freely spill his devotion towards Ladybug to.

Except maybe Marinette…? Not that she listened, but at least he could keep the conversation up, but lately, he’d had trouble focusing on Ladybug, and more how much Marinette...idolized him. Well, how she idolized Chat Noir. She wasn’t much of a fan of Adrien himself.

It was funny. She was one of the first people he’d saved when he started out as a hero. And...secretly, before he’d met Ladybug, he even had a little bit of a crush on her. Nothing serious, of course, but it was hard not to feel something when a pretty girl says you’re cute and heroic and all that.

Well, he wasn’t sure exactly what she said, but…

It was clear that she liked him to some extent. Maybe it was more akin to hero worship than something real, but it still flustered him to no end to hear her rave about him less than two feet from his desk. Or, he thought miserably, maybe it was just getting harder to pretend that his crush on Marinette was as small as he’d said it was.

Regardless, his feelings for Ladybug still remained the most important in his life. She was his best friend, a bit cold at times, but the only person he could really rely on. He even trusted her with his secret identity, not that she’d ever bothered to care.

“Don’t Ladybug and Chat Noir usually reveal their civilian identities by now…?” He asked Plagg, half thinking aloud.

“Yeah,” the kwami laughed. “I think it’s just you two. You’ve got more of a business relationship than anything else.”

Adrien moaned into his pillow in despair, mourning his chance of a love life. Or even something resembling a personal relationship with His Lady. “It’s useless, Plagg, she’ll never see me as more than a stupid cat who bothers her on patrol.”

“Well you can’t exactly give up now.” Plagg said. “It’s important that you two become close for your powers to work well in tandem with one another.”

“That almost makes it worse,” he said solemnly. “If it’s so important for us and our powers, and she still doesn’t even want to try to get closer...does she hate me that much?”

“I can’t believe I have to coach you through this useless angst session,” the kwami complained, then appeared to resign himself. “I wonder why all of the Cat Miraculous users tend to be so fond of dramatics...”

Adrien sniffled. “So...that coaching?”

“Right. Ladybug obviously doesn’t hate you. Would you trust someone to have your back day in and day out if you hated them? And she voluntarily joins you on patrols like twice a week. Have you considered she’s a bit nervous to reveal her personal identity not because she hates you, but because she’s got boundaries? Or that she’s nervous?”

He immediately recalled the four separate occasions in which he’d asked his Lady for some honesty between them. She’d frozen up, and found an excuse to leave and some half assed excuse to keep their identities a secret before leaving in a rush. 

He’d assumed that she was upset with him, or frustrated at his persistence, but maybe Plagg was right and he’d been overlooking her feelings this whole time. If she’d been afraid of revealing her true self to him, maybe he’d really hurt her by pushing her for so long, but…

“But how could she even think to be nervous?” He scratched his head. “She’s Ladybug . She’s strong, and compassionate, and no matter what she does, she always manages to bring the world back into order by the end of it.”

Plagg sighed. “I really have to spell it out for you?” A pause, and Adrien decided to nod in case it wasn’t actually rhetorical. “Don’t you think that’s a big image to live up to?”

He swallowed hard. Oh god. Not only had he pressured her to reveal herself, but he held to such a high standard that she was too afraid to even try and tell him who she really was.

Adrien stuffed his face into his pillow once again. “God, I’m the worst. I don’t even deserve to be her partner, much less her friend. This whole time I’ve been doing so much to pressure her, and hurting her in the process, and…” he sat up straighter. “I really owe her an apology, don’t I?”

Plagg laughed. “Finally, you figured out something for yourself. Just try not to get back in your own head too much, you puny little cat.”

“Who’s calling who a puny little cat?” Adrien laughed. “And for what it’s worth, thanks. I’m surprised it took so long to get good advice out of you.”

The cat bared his fangs. “Don’t get used to it. This is only to spare Tikki’s sanity, I assure you.”

“Tikki?” Adrien wondered aloud. But his kwami was already floating off, no doubt to ransack the kitchen before taking another cat nap.

And he had more important things to do, like plan out an apology for his Lady on their next patrol.

What he failed to realize at that moment was that he wouldn’t even get the chance to.

= = =

The next morning, Adrien got up bright and early at 6:45, with the sun shining in his windows, and his shoulders lightened with the promise of a wonderful future with his partner in crime. He’d just had a dream about Ladybug in a wedding gown, and he chose to think of it as a premonition rather than just a fantasy.

Needless to say, Plagg got extra camembert that morning.

He practically floated through the rest of his classes, even ignoring Marinette’s jabs in favor of practicing in his head for their patrol that Friday. He only had two more days to mentally ready himself. And maybe if he communicated himself well, she’d take off that mask, and they’d exchange phone numbers, and become BFFs in real life. 

His head spun with the possibilities. So it was jarring when Plagg hissed at him at the end of classes, that something was wrong.

Adrien snuck off to the bathroom and pulled his kwami out. “What’s wrong? There’s not an akuma or anything, right?” If he’d missed it, he was more stuck in his head than he’d thought.

“Obviously not,” Plagg grunted. “Don’t you think there’d be more of a commotion if there was?”

Adrien laughed. “I think our school’s gotten a little too accustomed to akuma attacks, honestly…”

“Never mind that. More importantly, Fu is in trouble. His kwami sent out a distress signal, so you should hurry and--”

No sooner had Plagg spoken than he was rushing to get to Master Fu’s shop. He dodged the Gorilla swiftly and with the accuracy of someone who ran rooftops and dodged criminals on the regular. But in his hurry, he’d bumped into Marinette, who seemed similarly frantic.

“Hey, Mari, you in a rush?” He said, offering a hand to let her up. 

“I guess you could say that,” she said hastily. “Actually, I need to be going--” she said, and began running in the same direction he was going.

A feeling of dread crept over Adrien. He began jogging alongside her. “Not to be a creep, but I’m also in a rush. And it happens to be this way.”

She groaned. “Figures. Today is going just great , isn’t it?”

He laughed, but it came out as more of a soft wheeze with his breaths as he ran. “The feeling is mutual. Anyways, don’t worry. There’s no way you can keep up the whole way, so you won’t have to--”

Mari squinted her eyes at him, and then mercilessly decided to turn up the speed. Her legs extended effortlessly into long, leaping strides, but she still seemed unfazed.

“Having trouble keeping up, Adrikins?” She said, taunting him.

It would be an insult to Paris’s best if he let a mere civilian beat him in a footrace, so of course he had to put everything into it. But Marinette gave just as good as she got. And Adrien started to wonder where all this mysterious speed came from. Was she a track star in a past life…? From Alya’s complaints, all Mari did in her free time was sketch designs and fangirl over Chat Noir.

But before he knew it, they’d rolled up at Master Fu’s tea shop, and to his surprise, she stopped where he did.

“You’re not…” she started awkwardly, before he interjected with even more confusion, “You’re not going here , are you?”

She looked grimly at the door, then her purse for some reason, before nodding. “Unfortunately, it looks like we’ve got the same destination in mind. You don’t know Mr. Fu, do you?”

Adrien swallowed nervously. “Uh, yeah , yes I--well, I met him by chance, really, so it depends on what you mean by know …”

She rolled her eyes. “Let’s just go inside.” Under her breath she muttered something like “ Stay in the bag .”

Was it possible Adrien’s ears were going out? He thought cats were supposed to have a better sense than humans, and yet…

They descended down a short staircase and entered Master Fu’s tea room, where he sat at the table. His kwami was out, and the box with the remaining Miraculouses was as well.

Adrien gasped and looked at Marinette. She was staring back with the same sense of horror and fear that he figured was reflected on his own expression.

The old man cleared his throat. “Chat Noir, Ladybug, I’m surprised you were both able to make it here so quickly. Take a seat.”

= = =

Two minutes later, the teens were still staring at Master Fu, with a dead silence hanging in the air. “Have you two seriously not figured this out already?” Fu said, shaking his head in disbelief. Adrien belatedly tried to apologize, but Fu cut him off. “Not you two. Them .” He pointed to their kwamis, who looked bashful.

Tikki smiled halfheartedly. “We did try. But the bond between the Cat and the Ladybug is often a delicate balance, so we…”

“Decided to wait almost a year?” He sighed. “You need to remember that a year is a lot more time for humans than it is for you. They’re at the point where this is a necessary development for the Miraculous holders.” He took a good look at them. “Your civilian lives as well as your lives as Ladybug and Chat Noir are equally important to keeping yourselves on guard against Hawkmoth.”

They looked bashfully at one another. Adrien cleared his throat. “Well, if it helps, we know each other outside of the suit already.” 

Fu gave a half hearted smile. “That’s a first step, yes. But you two must become much closer if we are to face the coming danger with Hawkmoth.”

Wayzz piped up from beside him. “We’d called you here because we had intel on Hawkmoth’s identity, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to pursue any leads if you’re still at this stage.”

They nodded, and Marinette hid her head in shame. “I’m sorry, Master Fu. It’s all thanks to me-- I thought keeping our identities a secret was for the best. I had no idea that--”

“Don’t worry, child. There is still plenty of time before you need to really worry about eliminating that threat. Wayzz and I will keep you two posted on our information. In the meantime…”

“Focus on strengthening the bond of your Miraculous!” Wayzz finished cheerfully.

Marinette and Adrien glumly left Fu’s shop, dreading the moment they’d have to face one another. Adrien’s head was already buzzing with thoughts, wondering how he’d even speak to his Lady in the flesh, but she’d made an excuse and fled as soon as they were outside.

“I screwed up big time, didn’t I?” He asked Plagg.

The cat rolled his eyes. “I’m getting too old for this teen melodrama.”

“Wait a minute,” he protested. “Wasn’t she...a fan of Chat Noir? No way, Ladybug is…” His face burst into a flush and he held his cheeks in embarrassment. “Didn’t she have a crush on him? I mean, me?”

Chapter Text

Marinette screamed into her deluxe Chat Noir limited edition pillow the second she got back into her room. Her phone was buzzing with messages, but she threw it across the room, too overwhelmed to even check.

“Marinette,” Tikki said sympathetically.

After a few beats, she looked up from her pillow and caught her breath. “Just let me have a breakdown for a little bit?” The kwami nodded and headed up to the loft to give her some space. 

An hour later, her mom came into the room carrying a steaming mug of tea and some coconut macarons. “Hungry?” She asked.

Mari nodded and took the tea to calm her aching throat. “Thanks for checking in,” she croaked. “The noise didn’t carry in the shop, did it?”

“No, don’t worry about that sweetie.” She looked hesitant at her daughter’s fragile disposition, then decided to drop the news. “I actually came up here because a certain classmate of yours came to say hello.”

The color drained from Marinette’s face. “He’s not here , is he?”

Her mother just laughed. “I figured you wouldn’t want to see him, based on how guilty he looked. He’s a sweet looking boy, though. You didn’t break his heart or anything, did you?”

At that, all of the blood that had left her face came rushing back up to redden her cheeks in embarrassment. “It’s nothing like that! We’re just classmates, barely even friends.” She coughed, the pain from screaming out her humiliation finally kicking in. “ Please don’t let him in.”

“He left about twenty minutes ago,” she said. “Your father can be quite protective when it comes to boys inquiring about his daughter. Adrien seemed well up to the challenge.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Mari muttered, mostly to herself. 

“Well, I’ll leave you to your brooding,” Sabine said. “But if you ask me, Adrien looks an awful lot like that Chat Noir you love so much. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to give real boys a chance.”

Marinette promptly disappeared under her blanket again, with a quiet, “Thanks, Maman.”

The second her mother left, the screaming continued once again. 

= = =

Of course, it was only a Wednesday that Marinette’s life--not only her civilian life, but even her treasured identity as Ladybug--tragically ended. So she didn’t even have the opportunity to hide out and collect herself for a weekend.

Thursday morning, she even woke up early, heart pounding with the stress of seeing her partner again in the flesh, with his mask off. Damn, was she sweating already?

More daunting was the prospect of facing the boy she’d openly thirsted after as Marinette, in front of Chat Noir himself. She recalled, belatedly, her tirade to Alya about black leather and regretted all of the events in her life that led her to this point.

Poor Adrien, who’d listened to her wax poetry about his green eyes and his cute flirtatious demeanor and his glorious calf muscles, who’d been too kind to even shut her down. He probably pitied her now, knowing her situation. He probably lost all the respect he’d had for Ladybug in the first place.

Because that was all Adrien’s fan behavior had really been, right? A gentle, sweet and respectful admiration for his partner. And yet Mari had to go and ruin one of the best friendships of her life with her big mouth.

“Alya,” she groaned into her phone in desperation. The hand on the clock had already clawed its way to 7:30 and it felt like the world was collapsing in on itself.

“Is the world ending?” Alya grumbled from the other end of the line. 

“ Yes,” Mari said, dead serious. Her best friend had the gall to laugh at her.

“I don’t think you’ve been up this early since Chat Noir released those autographed prints--”

“ Don’t even say his name,” she hissed. “We are both never speaking of him again, from this point on.”

Alya audibly gasped. “Who are you and what have you done with my catboy obsessed best friend?”

“He’s not a catboy , he’s a--okay, no, we’re not talking about it. There was an...incident, which shall not be described, and now he’s forbidden from discussion.”

“How will you and Adrien ever connect? You two were finally getting somewhere with all of your fan discussions.” She yawned. “Nino’s gonna be disappointed to hear this…”

“I really can’t do this today, Alya,” she said, and hung up, before getting one last scream of frustration out of her system.

= = =

As if her luck couldn’t get any worse, Adrien himself was waiting for her at the steps in front of school. She was tempted to make a total 180 and book it right back to her bed, where she belonged, but he looked too eager.

To make a fool of her, maybe? But she couldn’t help but indulge him.

“Marinette!” He said, grinning at her. It was strange to see that smile, without the mask on. “I’m so glad you made it on time. With your normal timing, I was afraid I’d be walking in by myself.”

She nodded faintly. “Yes, that would be odd.”

He looked at her. “You’re not...mad, about yesterday, right? I know we didn’t exactly have a chance to talk about it or anything but--”

Alya decided to save her at that moment. “Oh, well look at you two. When did you guys get so chummy?”

Adrien blushed at that. Mari tried to keep her jaw shut. It was easier to see him blush without the mask on... she thought absently, and then manually forced her mouth to close.

“It’s nothing, really. Marinette and I have kind of always been friends, right?” He said, his big puppy eyes staring hopefully at her again.

She nodded once more, feeling like her soul was trying to forcefully eject itself. Was this his way of friendzoning her? What a kind guy, really. What a gentle rejection, after he was forced to listen to her overbearing confessions day after day.

Alya scratched her chin. “Did you finally come to some agreement on Ladybug and Cha--oh wait, is that what this morning was about?”

Mari looked at her in dread, and tried to communicate with her eyes ‘don’t say a word’ but Alya was looking at Adrien instead. “This morning, she called me, all ‘don’t even talk about Chat’. Maybe she’s a Ladybug fangirl now?”

Adrien grinned at her. “I would hope so. But Chat isn’t too bad himself, I guess.” And then he winked. Like a demon in an angel’s body.

At this point, she was afraid of leaving her deceased body in Adrien’s presence, so the second she spotted Nino she took it as a sign. “Let’s all head inside, guys. No use lingering around talking, or we’ll be late.”

“Late?” Alya laughed. “This is the earliest you’ve ever--”

“Is that the bell I hear?” She said in a deadpan, and wandered off, not even bothering to see if the others followed her.

Nino yawned loudly. “What’s up with Mari?” He asked them.

Alya laughed. “No idea.” Adrien just looked slightly guilty. “Wait, the bell isn’t supposed to ring for another two minutes…”

= = =

Adrien felt like he was floating. No, soaring. No--even the feeling of gliding across Paris’s skies didn’t compare to the absolute lightness in his chest at the knowledge that his Lady was sitting right behind him in class. 

That she’d been right by his side all along.

He even got to wait for her at the school gates. She’d looked so cute today, even though her pigtails were a bit more lopsided than usual. He’d wanted to tell her, and maybe she would have let him fix them for her--

But thinking like that was greedy. He had realized by now that he’d have to earn his place by her side as Adrien, and get closer to Marinette more naturally. After all, he’d only pushed her away day after day in class. Sure, they were friends with a bitter rivalry, but she deserved better than that right?

He sat up, struck by the realization. This had to be a test. Her silence around him, the cold demeanor she’d had this morning...it was a sign that he had to prove his worth, right?

Adrien had to woo Marinette properly if he was going to get anywhere. And she’d even told him all the things she liked! This couldn’t be too hard. He just had to pull out all of his Chat Charm (™) and convince the girl of his dreams that he was worthy of her attention (and maybe affection, if he was really lucky).

“Adrien, is there anything you’d like to share with the class?” Mme. Bustier asked curiously. Only then did he realize he was sitting up tall and grinning at the chalkboard with a vacant expression.

“N-nothing,” he said. Nino nudged him worriedly, and he just shook his head.

He had to make a plan, but it could wait. For now, he just had to avoid embarrassing himself in front of the love of his life twice in one class period.

= = =

That night, Adrien didn’t have the self control not to make some moves of his own. Marinette had left class in a sprint the second class ended, and there was no way he was keeping up with such a speed demon. (Thinking about it again, the super strength did make a lot more sense in retrospect). 

And the last time he’d visited her as Adrien, her father had seemed eager to interrogate him on everything he could think of, before deciding to just kick him out. No, that wouldn’t do.

“Plagg,” he whispered giddily, and the fairy flew up next to him, looking annoyed.

“You’ve been extra energetic today, but I see you’re still neglecting my Camembert portions.” Plagg really was just an old man at heart.

“Shh, I’ll get you a snack later. Claws out!”

His usual surge of excitement at the freedom of his suit was doubled at the thought of what he could do now that he knew the location of his Bug’s hideout. He didn’t even have time to think of an excuse to bother her before he was crouched over her roof, knocking on the door.

“Hello, princess,” he said, only to be cut off by an abrupt slam, and a scream from the room below him. He tried to get a view of his reflection in the window…was there something on his face?

She opened the door again about a minute later, cheeks flushed and heaving large breaths. Her voice was hoarse but she seemed to be feigning nonchalance. “What brings you here, Chat?”

“Just wanted to pay my lovely partner a visit. We haven’t,” he lowered his eyes nervously, “you know, talked about everything. Our identities and stuff. I wasn’t sure if you were mad at me after yesterday. I know it was a lot to take in.”

Marinette looked shocked. “Mad at you? Of course not, Adrien.” She swallowed heavily. “If anything, I was more worried you’d be upset with me. After everything I’ve said, right in front of you, too…”

At that moment, he looked past her shoulder and saw the giant Chat Noir body pillow propped up next to her desk. Something went warm in the pit of his stomach at the sight of it, and he couldn’t stop the grin from snaking across his whole face. 

Marinette noticed it too, looking behind herself and stiffening in embarrassment. “That’s just--”

Adrien hopped into the room to examine it more closely. The pillow was a few inches short, and that just seemed unfair. He held it up against him. “Not nearly as tall, or broad.” He laughed. “Where did they get these measurements, anyways?”

“God, right? It’s not like there isn’t enough footage of the two of us online to make perfect ratioed measurements, and to be that far off is ridiculous. I swear, everyone who makes Chat merch thinks you’re--” she blinked, and then seemed to realize she was saying this in front of the man himself. “I mean. Yeah, it’s too small.”

“It’s a shame,” Chat said, lounging on her chaise like he fit there. He swallowed and gathered his courage for this one. It was so much harder when he had to look at those big blue eyes and know it was Marinette he was talking to. His cheeks warmed. “Why use a shabby old pillow like that when you have the real thing right here?” He waggled his brows for extra measure.

Her mouth gaped open and closed a few times in succession, but she didn’t seem able to respond with words at the moment. He felt a rush of embarrassment for going too far. Shit , he thought, she must be so uncomfortable knowing it’s me .

“I--sorry,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “It was a reflex, honestly.”

She sighed, and perched on a bean bag chair in front of him. “Would it be easier to…you know?” She said, gesturing towards the mask.

On the one hand, she’d be more comfortable. But Adrien found he lost a lot of his confidence without his Chat getup.  Still, if he ever wanted to earn Marinette’s full trust and woo her properly, he’d have to learn to talk to her both with and without the mask on his own as well.

“Plagg, claws in!” He said, and felt the leather suit retract. As he’d suspected, it was definitely harder to face her like this. 

= = =

Marinette breathed a sigh of relief. At least this way, she could pretend that Adrien wasn’t her superhero crush sitting amidst piles of his own paraphernalia. Only slightly less humiliating, but still.

She was surprised he’d shown up here today with his tail between his legs (literally). As far as she was concerned, she was the only one in the wrong, seeing as she’d been crossing boundaries with him since day one. Half of her expected him to show up with a restraining order.

Instead, he looked…scared. Even now, sitting on her chaise, he lacked all of the confidence he’d strutted in with. Although Mari had known him long enough to recognize the bravado he’d marched in with as an act.

Was it really true that he thought she’d be upset with him?

She sat down on the floor across from him, taking another moment to observe him. It was honestly hard to tell how she’d missed it, knowing Chat’s mannerisms down to a tee. Adrien exhibited the same anxious ticks, the same nervous laughter when he didn’t know what to say, but it seemed to have a more muted tone without that suit of armor over top of it.

“Adrien,” she said. “Chat. I’m not upset with you. Why do you feel like you have to apologize? We’re partners…and honestly, you’re probably my best friend.”

“Are you disappointed?” He asked. “I know we--I mean, our civilian identities--don’t agree on everything. And I know I’m a lot different as Adrien. Probably not what you expected.”

“Well, I would hope you weren’t running around Paris throwing out Chat Noir’s one liners and exposing your own identity,” she joked. “Besides, I’m not much of a hero outside of the suit. No one would expect me to be someone like Ladybug, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”

“That’s not true!” Adrien protested. “You’re exactly the kind of person I expected Ladybug to be. I just didn’t think I’d have to fight you on how amazing you are--I mean, Ladybug is--er, you know what I mean.”

She knew. It was hard to misinterpret the way he so quickly corrected himself when he realized that she might take it the wrong way. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I get what you mean.”

“What I’m trying to say,” Adrien said, “is that you’re everything I’d imagined, and more. And I’m--I’m going to become someone worthy of being your partner.”

She flushed at the phrasing. Even though she knew he was only talking about their duties to Paris, she hopelessly wished it could mean something more than that. Instead of putting a safe distance between them, she’d made even more of a mess of things.

After so long dreading the moment she’d have to face him again, she still caved to those bright green eyes and brilliant grin.

“You’re plenty worthy.” She told him. “But for what it’s worth, I’ll be working to be worthy of you too.” As long as she could manage to curb her expectations, maybe things wouldn’t be too bad. Unfortunately, her traitorous heart pounded in her chest, suggesting otherwise.

Chapter Text

Marinette wasn’t sure just how much of this kind of proximity she could handle before she would just snap.

Adrien sat next to her at a table in the library, after finally convincing her to partner up with him on their history assignment. (That is, texting her nonstop and then finally just paying Alya five bucks to partner with Nino instead. She had sent Alya a minute long voicemail just screaming as payback.)

Now, on a warm Thursday afternoon, she had to try and focus on something about religion in the 1400s. Instead, her head was full of thoughts about the feeling of Adrien’s thigh, which kept pressing up against hers, and the way his breath huffed in frustration and ruffled his bangs.

That’s it; she was snapping. After their identities had been revealed, Adrien had seemingly taken every chance he could to initiate closeness, and even started playfully flirting the way he’d always done with Ladybug. It was so much easier to pretend it didn’t get to her when she was in the suit, and could quickly brush it off like the throwaway line it was.

Instead, she got all warm and bubbly, fighting back a huge grin every time he said something remotely sweet. Of course, this was immediately followed by a surge of hot embarrassment. She knew better. And acting this way felt like a violation of Adrien’s trust as a friend. She’d already crossed boundaries long before the masks came off, and was doing her best to keep a lid on those pesky feelings she had, but no luck.

“What do you think about focusing on some of the more artistic aspects of the time instead?” Adrien suggested, pulling her out of her thoughts. “After all, if we went with the period fashion element, I’m sure we’d get an A.”

“Hm? Oh, right, 1400s French fashion? Well it depends on which social group we’d be examining, of course--and so much of it is impacted by industrialization and the greater access to more complex outfits. So, we’d need to expand on a bunch of--” she paused. Adrien was looking at her with a weird grin on his face. “What is it?”

“My Lady is so cute when she’s actually interested in something.” He laughed. “I could tell you weren’t focused at all. Researching a topic you’d be interested in is much more important.”

“What?” Her brow furrowed in annoyance, trying to cover up the pleasant thrum in her chest at ‘My Lady is so cute.’ “I totally was paying attention! We were discussing the--power struggle between the church and the King?”

“I think you’re about 200 years off on that one, Bug. Don’t sweat it, I think Mme. Bustier would be impressed if we looked at a more niche aspect of the history. Plus, we’ve both got some good insight on how it might impact fashion today. A designer and a model. Want to dress me up for our presentation?” He struck a pose.

“Pft,” she laughed at his posing in the library. It was a side she’d never seen much of from Adrien, but she was glad to see it now. “No way am I dressing up Agreste's feature model in tights and shorts.”

“It can’t be much more embarrassing than a cat suit, right?” He fluttered his lashes, leaning in slightly. “Besides, I’d let you dress me up however you wanted, My--”

A loud bang sounded from outside the library window, and they both jumped in their seats. It gave Mari an excuse for why she looked so panicked, apart from the ridiculously low tone Adrien had just had back there, what even was that--

BOOM! Okay, so maybe not the time to think about that. “Akuma,” she surmised. 

“We can transform in the bathrooms. Let’s meet outside the building in a minute, okay?” He squeezed her hand reassuringly, and Mari ignored the way it only sped her heart rate up. 

How was her superhero double life less difficult than talking to her crush? Even after all this?

Oh well. All this flirty behavior from Adrien had been wearing her down for the past week. It resulted in a whole lot of aggression, and she finally had a chance to let out some steam. This akuma would regret interrupting her study date--er, session.

= = =

It was only after the smoke cleared over a pile of rubble, and Marinette threw up her Lucky Charm that the young girl returned to herself, dried tears still caked on her face. She felt a twinge of guilt for the barrage of punches she’d thrown at the girl out of her own frustration--but to be fair, she’d been hit twice as hard back.

The girl couldn’t have been older than ten, holding onto a picture of her recently divorced parents. After learning that she couldn’t live with her father anymore, Marinette couldn’t blame anyone for losing their composure, much less such a young kid.

Marinette pulled an arm around her shoulders in reassurance. “Don’t worry, brave girl. Your mom and dad should be here soon.”

No sooner than she had spoken, an SUV pulled up to the curb and two sobbing parents ran up to the girl, gently prying her from Marinette’s arms. Her eyes stung at the sight, as her partner stepped up behind her.

“My Lady,” he said earnestly, putting a hand on her shoulder for comfort. “Should we let them figure this out? After all,” he tapped her earring, a whisper of a touch on her skin causing her to shiver. “We don’t have enough time to stay and chat .”

She snorted, despite herself. “I’m sorry,” she said to the family. “We really need to be going.” She kneeled down to the girl one last time. “Thanks for being so strong, little lady. You should try and tell your parents how you’re feeling, all right?”

She nodded quickly, and gave Marinette a fierce hug in return. The stinging in her eyes returned full force. “Thanks, Ladybug!” she grinned, and ran back to her parents.

Chat had to gently lead her away from the scene before their transformations wore off.

When the mask faded, he noticed her eyes tearing up. “Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” His soft, bare hands moved to wipe the tears from her cheeks. “You did great out there, what’s gotten you so upset?”

“It’s just…seeing how Hawkmoth takes advantage of these people at their lowest moments, it’s disgusting.” She sighed. “This poor family has had it rough enough, and now their daughter gets thrown into the mix, all because she felt some sadness not being able to see her dad? That’s too cruel.”

Adrien embraced her. “That’s what we’re here for. You’re the greatest hero I know, and every time I see the way you care so deeply, it reminds me why I fell for you in the first place.”

Marinette froze.

Was he seriously flirting in a situation like this? She felt a tight lump in her throat. “Adrien, now isn’t really the time for jokes.” She pulled away, tears springing up for a completely different reason now. “I think…I need to be getting home.”

He looked startled, but his eyes softened at her exhausted form. “You’re right, you deserve some rest. Just remember to let me know when you get back, okay?” She nodded wearily. “And…if you want to talk about anything…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll let you know,” she said miserably. As if she could bemoan how hard it was to listen to him joke about being in love with her, when she had already spilled all her feelings to him without even knowing.

When she finally arrived in her bed, slumping defeatedly under her covers, she pulled out her phone for a quick ‘home’ text, one that was immediately met with a thumbs up emoji, and another message offering to talk if she wanted.

She groaned and threw the phone across the room. (Of course, making sure that it landed on the chaise cushion. She wasn’t a monster.) Was it time to admit how pathetic she was and ask Adrien to stop flirting when she clearly couldn’t handle the feelings that came along with it?

Shamefully, she admitted to herself that she didn’t want him to stop . She just wanted him to mean what he said when he did it.

= = =

The next week, Adrien could barely reach Marinette, aside from the few moments they spent together after an akuma attack, and once more for a brief conversation about their history project. It was obvious enough that she was avoiding him--even Alya went up to him after class to confront him about it.

“Did you do something to upset her?” She asked him. “Because it seems like she doesn’t want to get within ten feet of you right now.”

Adrien shook his head hopelessly. “I was kind of hoping you’d have more of a clue than I did. Has she talked to you about it? She seemed upset the last time we really talked, but I didn’t know if there was anything more to it.”

Seeing his concern, Alya softened a bit. “I really don’t know, but she’s been moping all week. The other day, she told me she was thinking about selling her vintage Chat Noir poster. I’m honestly terrified something’s gone wrong.”

Alarm bells rang in his head. If she was upset with him, then removing the Chat memorabilia would make sense. So perhaps it was something he did? She’d left pretty suddenly after that attack, but he was sure she had just been worn out from comforting that kid…

But then again, he’d also remembered her stiffening uncomfortably in his arms. He sighed. Of course, he must have crossed a boundary at some point, and it was his responsibility to apologize and make sure he didn’t cross it again. But it hurt to know she didn’t trust him enough to even tell him she was upset.

He’d have to do better, to earn that trust.

“I’ll talk to her about it,” Adrien promised. “Let me know if you find out what’s bothering her though, okay?”

Alya nodded. “You too. I know I’ve been rooting for you guys to be better friends, but remember the BFF spot is already taken.” 

“Noted.” Adrien smiled, knowing that despite Alya’s insistence, his role as Ladybug’s partner was one that would be difficult to compare to. Not that they were comparing, of course. 

= = =

He finally caught her that Saturday, after bugging her about patrolling for the past few days. She caved and agreed to meet him at their usual spot on the tower, and he was so elated he came almost an hour early just to wait for her. 

When she saw him sitting so eagerly on the edge of the tower, her shoulders fell in what looked like disappointment. A part of him wanted to hide, to run home and bury himself under his covers rather than face her anger towards him. But the side of him that worried too much won over.

“Hey bug,” he said, feeling suddenly shy. 

“Chat,” she said. 

“I just wanted to check in with you, see how you were doing, from this week.” He scratched the back of his neck self consciously. “And…I wanted to apologize.”

She looked surprised. “Apologize? For what? Chat, I know I’ve been pretty distant this week, but that’s my own issue to deal with.”

“I may not be the brightest cat in the litter, but I do know something upset you. And after this week, I have a feeling it had something to do with me. I crossed a line somewhere, that day, and it’s my fault for not knowing your…boundaries. And I’m sorry for that.”

“It’s not your responsibility to manage how I feel about every little thing, Chat,” she said, ruffling his hair affectionately. She pulled back after realizing what she was doing, but the gentleness remained there. Even now, she was doing all she could for the sake of his feelings. Even when she was hurt.

It gave him the courage to keep talking. “It might not be my job, but I want to get better at understanding anyways. And regardless of whether I knew or not, it’s clear I…I still made you uncomfortable. And I knew, even then--when I hugged you, you totally stiffened up.” 

Her face turned red, and her expression morphed into one of confusion. “Hug? You…”

“And I know affection can be complicated, and maybe you just couldn’t handle it at that moment? But I still--”

“Adrien,” she said. “Do you seriously think I’m upset because you hugged me?”

He blinked, hoping his panic wasn’t showing. “I mean, I wasn’t sure exactly, but…”

“That’s not why I was upset, I--” she swallowed. “Adrien, I’ve been very…upfront with how I feel. And to have that thrown back at me, as a joke, really hurt me. I won’t lie. I know you would never mean it in a cruel way, but I just would appreciate it if,” she hesitated. “If you could try not to flirt like that.”

Adrien was dumbfounded. 

“I’ll get over it, don’t worry. But I need some time to just deal with my feelings.” She laughed, but it sounded joyless. “They were pretty strong, so it will just take a little more time than that.”

“Joke? Huh?” Adrien said. “My Lady, I--no, Marinette. You know I’m not just flirting, right?”

She stopped in her tracks. “Not just--”

“I know it might be tacky or whatever, but I seriously mean everything I say, you know?” He felt hot under his leather collar, hoping his mask would hide whatever redness clung to his cheeks. “I’m just being honest with how I feel. You know I’m in love with you, right?”

= = = 

Marinette ostensibly did not know that Chat Noir, the love of her life, had similar feelings to her own. And as her brain worked to process that fact, the rest of her functioning brain cells worked to do what was necessary. Instead, a steady hum of static was all that her muddled thoughts could get through.

You know I’m in love with you right?

“Marinette… Marinette!” Chat was waving his hand in front of her face, looking more worried than when he’d sat her down for this conversation. “Are you okay?”

“Hmm? Sorry, I must have fallen asleep. I could have sworn that you said you--”

“Love you?” He laughed. “Is it really that hard to believe?”

The look she gave him must have said it all.

He grinned, puzzled. “Mari, I have not shut up about you in the year we’ve been partners. You’re a literal superhero goddess, and not only that but your civilian self is one of my best friends, and one of the kindest people I--”

She covered his mouth with her hand. “Gimme a sec. Sorry, I just need to--”

“Not yet,” he said, pulling her hand off. “Geez, will you let me finish complimenting you? Like I was saying, you’re one of the kindest and most selfless people I know. To the point where you’d spend a Saturday night trying to make me feel better about upsetting you. And I’ve been spending the last few weeks trying to build up the courage to…to ask you to be my partner. In all things.”

Marinette felt tears burn hot on her cheeks, but she was grinning all the same. “Adrien,” she said.

“And I realize now, that it might have come across as juvenile flirting, like always.” He said. “But everything I’ve said is truthful.”

“I thought you flirted with everything that moved,” she admitted, the words spilling out of her. “God, I was so upset every time you used a line on me, since I thought…I thought it was just a bit.” 

“W-what? No! I’ve never flirted with anyone else--well, except…” he turned red.

“Except?”

“With… you, you. I mean, your civilian self.” He looked down. “I had a small, tiny crush on you, Marinette , before I met you as Ladybug. I-it wasn’t big or anything, but--when I fell for you as Ladybug, it was completely different. And now I’m realizing that I’m a dumbass and just liked the same person the whole time.”

Marinette tackled him at that and wrestled him into a tight hug. “You stupid cat! Why are you so sweet to me?” She kissed his nose lightly, and he gasped. “And I almost sold my limited edition Chat merch, I was so upset.”

“I heard,” he said. “Really, that’s what tipped me off that you weren’t okay. After all, who could let go of such a piece of art?”

She looked him up and down, and smiled. “Well, I wouldn’t mind too much. The real thing is much better.”

= = =

(epilogue)

“Are you really not going to tell Alya?” Adrien said, pouting as he rested his head on Mari’s shoulder. He liked watching her sewing projects, and she didn’t mind the company (as long as he kept his paws off the string, that is).

“Well, it wouldn’t be an issue if you weren’t so touchy on patrol,” she said knowingly. The press had gone wild when they’d seen Chat dipping her in for a kiss in broad daylight. At least a dozen civilians had gotten amateur photos, and by the end of the night they’d been plastered everywhere.

Worst of all, though, was Alya.

Marinette checked her phone again. ‘Oooh, what do you think they’ll name their kids?’ Alya had sent. Adrien laughed. “I wonder too,” he teased.

“Well keep thinking about it, because you won’t have to worry about it anytime soon.” she huffed. “Anyways, I don’t want her suspecting anything. Alya already knows I’d never date another man than Chat. Under oath.”

“O-oath?” He asked.

“If she sees me dating you, I doubt it would take long to connect the dots. Especially after Ladybug and Chat got together on the same day .” She patted his arm where it hung at her side. “Give it another week or two. We can convince her you’ve done your best to comfort me after my heartbreak, and shown me new love.”

He laughed. “That makes two of us. Oh, Marinette, how shall I ever move on from my midnight haired starlight goddess superhero?”

She snorted. “Worry not, Adrien. I shall take all your woes away with my never ending love…” He leaned in for a kiss. “As soon as I’m done sewing!”

He giggled. “Alright, alright. You win.” 

Many things had changed. Mari had a lot more fun on patrols, for one thing. For another, her deluxe XL Chat Noir body pillow was often replaced with a much lankier and cuddlier teenage boy. But a lot stayed the same.

She and Adrien would continue bickering over Ladybug and Chat, but now, they could end the argument in a kiss. And if Mari’s fan blog was more active now than ever, who could blame her?